I have said for a long time that the banks just are not motivated to process the Short Sales or Loan Modifications.  I know when I started with them back in early 2007 it was very frustrating when there was a cash offer on the table with the bank and we couldn't get the offer accepted...only to have it come back on the market 6 weeks later for $50K less...of course I lost my buyers by that point.

As frustrating as it was then, I know short sales are still very frustrating for all who are involved...glad I got out of the sandbox and now get to play with REO's.

 

The San Jacinto, CA Real Estate market is very similar to every other local real estate market in the country - it is local and has it's own unique nuances.

In this Market Snapshot I am going to examine the market for 3 Bedroom 2 Bath Single Family Residential homes, across the entire city of San Jacinto and cover current statistical data and looking at sales in the city, spanning the last 90 days, only.

QUANTITY

ACTIVE - Currently there are 57 ACTIVE real estate listings in San Jacinto that range in size from 924 square feet to 2,481 sq feet with an average size of living space of 1,544 square feet.

These homes are listed for sale in the MLS from $59,900 ($44.53 per sq ft) to $359,000 ($227.23 per sq ft.)  The average List Price for ALL Active real estate listings in San Jacinto, CA is $131,369 ($86.54 per sq ft).

The AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET (DOM) is 89 with the newest listing being added to the MLS just 2 days ago.  (This data was compiled on a Saturday evening - no, I don't have a life, so leave me alone.)  The oldest listing has been aged like a fine wine for 466 days on the market (that's over 15 months ago!).

PENDING & BACK UP.  First let me explain that in the current real estate market conditions I do not believe there is much of a difference between these two statuses.  On the surface, a PENDING transaction sounds much stronger than a BACK-UP.  However, the reason I choose Back-Up for my listings once I have an accepted offer is because the various Internet sites will continue to market the homes for sale, as if they are ACTIVE real estate listings in the MLS.

There are currently 18 BACK -UP OFFERS and 54 PENDING SALE listings in the MLS.  The BACK-UPS range in size from 1,119 square feet to 2,210 sq ft with an average size of 1,593 square feet.  The PENDING properties start off smaller at 924 sq ft and range up to 2,255 sq ft with an average size of 1,490 sq ft.

Back-Up homes for Sale in San Jacinto, CA were listed in the MLS for sale starting at $67,900 ($50.11) and went up to $185,000 ($94.58) with an Average List Price of $114,983 (71.96 per sq ft).

Pending Listings were priced in the MLS for a low of $49,900 ($41.38 per sq ft) all the way to $310,000 ($199.10 per sq ft).  The Average List Price of $115,118 ($77.29 per sq ft) for all Pending properties for sale in the MLS.

The Average DOM for the Back Up listings ranged from 19 days to 361 days with 120 being the average.  Pending Listings were considerably less with zero days on market for the quickest sale to 253 for the longest and an average of 42 days on the market before an offer was accepted.

SOLD REAL ESTATE over the last 90 days only accounted for 56 closed escrows.  Considering there are only 57 Active Listings, all that is on the market for 3 bedroom 2 bath homes in San Jacinto CA is three months worth of homes for sale in the MLS.

Now, those homes that did sell were on the market as quick as zero days and as long as 186 day on the market.  The Average DOM for all the 3 bedroom 2 bath homes that sold in San Jacinto CA in the last 90 days was only 31 days.

The List Price of the Sold Homes in San Jacinto ranged from $40,600 ($42.80 per sq ft) to $275,000 ($215.31 per sq ft.).  The Average home that sold in San Jacinto over the last 90 day was listed in the MLS for $113,011.  Sale Price ranged from $44,000 to $275,000 with the average at $118,714 or 105.05% of List Price.

The Ratio between the List Price and the Sold Price is very important when studying the nuances of a market.  In San Jacinto, CA, over the last 90 days 10 of the 57 properties that closed escrow were for less than list price.  Three of these were with CASH, three were with FHA Financing and the remaining four used conventional financing. 

The lowest percentage of List Price to Sold Price was a 2467 sq ft home built in 2002 that was listed for sale at $159,900 and was sold after only 30 days on the market for 78.8% of the list price...or only $126,000 with Cash to purchase the home.

The Highest List Price to Sold Price of the homes that sold and closed escrow in San Jacinto over the last 90 days was up to 152.13% on a home built in 1978 with 1,448 sq ft.  It was listed at $53,900 and Sold 6 days later for $82,000.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS

Over the last 90 days we already determined that 56 homes sold throughout the entire city of San Jacinto, CA.  What I find extremely relevant and helpful for my buyers is that 46 of them were owned by the bank as an REO Listing.  Of the remaining 10, 7 were short sales and the last 3 were all Standard Sales - most likely flips.

Looking just at the 46 closed REO (Bank Owned) homes that were listed in the MLS as Closed Transactions, 20 of them sold with CASH and 8 more with Conventional Financing that requires significant cash down (typically 20% to 25% - as low as 10%).

16 REO homes for sale were financed by the FHA and 1 was a VA Loan and another a CAL Vet loan.

REO - BANK OWNDE HOMES

The Balance of this report will look at some of the same numbers but exclude all real estate sales that were not REO bank owned homes in San Jacinto, CA.

Of the 46 of the Closed REO Transactions, 20 of them or 43.48% were paid for with CASH money at an average of 104.37% of the List Price which averaged a List Price of $88,193 and a SOLD Price of $92,049. 

These CASH REO Transactions closed Escrow in only 22 days, on average after spending only an average of 22.5 days on the market before going into escrow.

Conventional Financing of the 8 transactions represented 17.39% of all REO Sales for an average of 105.44% of the List Price, with average list price of $124,781 and a SOLD Price of $131,575.

San Jacinto CA real estate that was purchased with Conventional financing was on the market in the MLS for an average of 44 days and took 61 days to close escrow.

Buyers of San Jacinto, CA real estate who relied of FHA loans ended up paying the highest percentage over List Price than any other buyer of bank owned homes paying, on average, 110.8% of the list price, which averaged $115,381 with a Sold Price of $127,838.

The FHA Financed homes were only on the market (DOM) an average of 30.4 days and took an average of 56 days to close escrow.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

The market has been such a difficult place to pinpoint overall trends which is why it has become critical to look at very narrow segments of the market, as they apply to each individual situation.

The first conclusion I make is that although the best deals are found with Cash - it is no longer the norm for a buyer with Cash to expect to receive a significant discount when purchasing San Jacinto real estate.

Most of us on ActiveRain are here for one of two reasons or hopefully a combination of both.

First, we love the atmosphere of this community - so we are here to socialize and expand our professional circles;

Second, we want/need to expand our circle of influence in our own brick and mortar communities and we want to accomplish this with Search Engine Optimization.

Blogging is great for both - no doubt.  However, I fear than many here never venture outside the blog walls of ActiveRain to venture into the big blog world that is out there...

Well, this re-blog will take you where you need to go and teach you how to behave once you arrive...please read on and learn about the rewards that wait for you on the other side...

 

San Jacinto, CA - City Offices & Services

When looking to buy real estate in San Jacinto, California it is nice to know that the real estate you buy is in the oldest incorporated city in all of Riverside County, CA. located in South West Riverside County portion of the Inland Empire region of Southern California - one of the fastest growing regions in the entire country.


The City of San Jacinto, California, City Hall is located at 595 South San Jacinto Avenue in Building "A", San Jacinto, CA 92583.  The City phone number is (951) 487-7330

The City Clerk is also located at 595 South San Jacinto Ave but in Building B.  The San Jacinto City Clerk phone number is (951) 487-7339.

The City of San Jacinto, CA Finance Department is in the same building, B, as the City Clerk as 595 South San Jacinto,  The Finance Dept phone number is (951) 537-6386.

Community Development for the City of San Jacinto is located in Building A at 595 South San Jacinto Ave. and can be reached by phone at (951) 487-7330.

The San Jacinto Police Department is located across the street from City Hall at 160 West 6^th Street and can be reached by phone at (951) 654-2702.  Of course in an EMERGENCY, always dial 911.  For a Mobile Emergency, please call (951) 776-1078.

The San Jacinto Community Center can be found nearby at 625 South Pico Avenue, San Jacinto, CA 92583.  The Community Center phone is (951) 654-7212.

The San Jacinto ‘City Corporation Yard' is located at 270 Bissel Place and can be reached at (951) 654-4041.

The CDF Fire Station is located at 132 South San Jacinto Avenue.  Of course, for emergencies do not hesitate - dial 911.  For all other calls, dial (951) 654-7912.


CITY SERVICES

Once you purchase real estate in San Jacinto you are a citizen of the City of San Jacinto. It is important to know who to call when there are either problems near your real estate or curiosity of what is going on around your real estate that demands an answer.  Please refer to this list of Services provided by the City of San Jacinto.

Abandoned or Inoperative Vehicles left in the street - Call (951) 654-2702.

Animal Control - Call (951) 358-7387

Code Enforcement - Call (951) 487-7330

Community Facilities District - Call (951) 487-7330

City Attorney - Call (951) 487-7330

City Council - Call (951) 487-7330

City Clerk - Call (951) 487-7339

Demographics and Development - Call (951) 487-7330

Fire Prevention - Call (951) 955-4777

Graffiti Hotline - Call (951) 654-4041

Job Listings - Call (951) 487-7330

Library - Call (951) 654-8635

Pothole & Pavement Repair - Call (951) 654-4041

Street Lights - Call (951) 654-4041

Street Sweeping - Call (951) 654-4041

Water Services - Call (951) 537-6386

Zoning - Call (951) 487-7330

REAL ESTATE - Call John Occhi and the Excellence in Real Estate Team at Allison James Estates & Homes to find out about current real estate market conditions if you are interested in buying or selling real estate.  Call (951) 654-5550.

The internet is such an amazing place...you start off doing something, you become distracted...get involved in something else and then you are in yet another distraction...

OK, guilty as charged.  Started off checking my email - saw I had a ‘friend request' on Facebook that I followed and got all involved on Facebook for a few minutes where I saw a video screen with 8 strange looking characters that I eventually clicked on...and was I pleasantly surprised!

The VocaPeople

Here is an acapella group of 8 that include 3 men singers, 3 women singers and a pair of ‘beat-box' artists who are responsible for the sounds that back-up the singers.  There are no instruments or any other props - just human voices (not 100% sure all those sounds are with a voice - let's just say they are all human sounds)

Take a few minutes for this diversion and enjoy the rest of your day...




In case you want to learn more about the VocaPeople, I found their website as well as a feature on CBS News that I found very enjoyable.

LAW PROFESSOR PROCLAIMS, "WALK AWAY RENEE"

Alright, University of Arizona Law School Professor Brent T White was not actually quoting the 1966 pop hit, Walk Away Renee, by the Left Banke but according to a Wall Street Journal article published on October 30^th he is indeed an advocate of the Strategic Default, that I have previously reported on. 

A strategic default is the decision to walk away from a home rather than continuing to pay for the home, despite the homeowners ability to pay.  More often than not, the strategic defaulting homeowner will continue to play the ‘credit game' and keep all of their other bills paid, as agreed.  The defaulting homeowner capitalizes on the opportunity to not pay the mortgage for a year or more and squirreling away a massive nest egg...an amount equivalent to the mortgage, property tax and maintenance on the property.

Conventional Wisdom is Challenged

The Conventional Wisdom of America has always been to accept our individual responsibilities in exchange for the individual liberties that we are afforded by the American Way of Life.  Our individual responsibilities have always been to be law abiding citizens, work for a living and take care of those we are suppose to - be it elder parents, handicapped children and the weak of society. 

In exchange for us doing our part as good Americans, we have been provided with the greatest nation the earth has ever seen.  As much as I want to bring God into this discussion, to satisfy the masses today I'll just present my ideas without giving any of the glory to God Almighty.  I'm sure many would agree that America has reached its position of prosperity in the world based strictly on the acts and deeds of mere mortal men.

So, what have we gotten in exchange for being good Americans?  Prosperity jumps to mind of many.  American have enjoyed the greatest life style in the world for decades, if not centuries now.  Personal freedom has always been a uniquely American virtue, the envy of the world, everywhere since our conception in 1776.  America has also remained a very safe land to live on.  Until the attacks of 9/11 there has not been any foreign hostilities on American Soil since the war of 1812.  Of course we haven't always been able to get along with our selves and Americans butchered over 620,000 Americans in the Civil War (makes the 5 or 6,000 lost in the Mid-East over 8 years seem like a day in the park, doesn't it?).

A key element to the American Dream has ALWAYS been to ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY for our own actions and that means we have always prided ourselves on our personal responsibility to honor our word...honor our handshake...honor our signature and pay our bills.

THE LAND OF ENTITLEMENT

America certainly has been in a transition for the last 5 decades...and longer.  Starting back in the 1960's the youth of the day (now those of us in our 50's and 60's who swore we would never get old) did challenge the conventional wisdom and started to bring about change.  Perhaps the biggest change of the period was social change and really starting  to change the way the black man was perceived and treated in this country.

Social Changes took place in the form of welfare, making certain that American Children had a support system when the parents could not provide.  Subsidized housing, medical care and food stamps were all cutting edge social experiments of the day.

The American youth if the 1960's and 70's also had a very significant impact on how this country looks at war.  No one can visualize the American Landscape of the 1960's without seeing a ‘hippy' flashing the ‘peace sign'.  Well, it went much deeper than that.  Because of the social awareness of the times, pressure was brought against the government to end the war in Viet Nam - even if it meant pulling out as the clear losers...the only war American has ever lost.  The movement went so far as to have a significant role in the abolishment of the ‘draft'.

World War 2 saw the world with over 50 MILLION less inhabitants after the war and 407,300 of them were American military (another 11,200 civilians).  World War 1 was nearly as devastating with over 37 MILLION Casualities (16 million deaths) of which only 53,402 were American military.  Collectively, in every American war or deployment there have been 2,542,911 Americans who were either killed or wounded and another 40,919 that remain on the books as Missing in Action (MIA).

THE LANDSCAPE HAS CHANGED

The America I see today has taken every social change that has ever been conceived of and magnified it by 1000%.  It is as if every decision the government or industry makes is based on who they will offend or who will feel as if they have been taken advantage of.  Certainly I do not see this as a political landscape that our founding fathers would be proud of...or even recognize as anything remotely similar to their great social experiment that became to be known as democracy.

The American I see today is not about the land of opportunity.  Yes, opportunity exists like never before, but today if you go out and get something or do something that improves your life style, it just isn't fair anymore that you ‘got' and the rest of the population ‘doesn't have'.  Its as the presidential candidate Obama told an Ohio plumber (Joe the Plumber) on the campaign trail that what America needs to do is "spread the wealth" because is "is good for everybody" (4:40 of video).  This is something that State Senator Obama has been publicly advocating since 2001.

"WALK AWAY IN DROVES"

Brent T. White the University of Arizona Associate Law Professor published a 54 page ‘Discussion Paper' title "Underwater and Not Walking Away:  Shame, Fear and Social Management of the Housing Crisis."

Please read the WSJ article and read through the discussion paper that Professor White wrote.  I personally get a little outraged when I read the printed advise "Homeowners should be walking away in droves,"

Admittedly, I have not read every word, but I do spot inconsistency after inconsistency between Professor Whites position and reality.

For example on page 3 the professor says, "This includes underwater homeowners that live in "non-recourse states" such as California and Arizona, where lenders cannot pursue defaulting homeowners for a deficiency judgment." 

This is just a half truth.  While it is true that borrowers who did not take out cash from their homes in a refinance do not face the prospect of a deficiency judgment; however those who did refinance and take cash out most definitely are in the crosshairs of the collection industry just waiting to get a bite out of that apple...probably prepared to buy these defaulted and written off debts for mere pennies on the dollar.

The professor goes on to say that those who don't default don't do so because of "two emotional forces" and they are "1) the desire to avoid the shame or guilt associated with foreclosure; and 2) fear over the perceived consequences of foreclosure."

He speaks of the emotion of GUILT as if it were a bad thing.  Come on people, the reason most of us don't do a lot of things is because of the moral fiber we were raised with that is strengthened by the fear of the negative consequences of our actions, should we stray from the socially acceptable norm.

Furthermore, the professor talks about the ‘perceived consequences of foreclosure' as if he has a crystal ball and knows exactly how this crisis is going to play out and how society will look upon those who manipulated they system and drove the economy further and deeper into the hole it is in now.  After all, if everyone who could have stayed in their home, with a minor inconvenience or struggle had opted to stay...where would we be today?  Even the professor calculates that only about 25% of the foreclosures are ‘strategic defaults'.

If 25% of the homes lost to foreclosure had stayed, and continued to make their mortgage payments and paid their property taxes instead of shifting the burden onto the rest of the taxpayers...where would we be today, professor?  Obvious your degree is not in economics.

IF SOMEONE ELSE IS DOING IT - SHOULD I DO IT TOO?

This report is too outrageous.  "Unlike lenders who follow market norms, individual homeowners are encouraged to behave in accordance with social norms of "personal responsibility" and "promise-keeping."  And what do we have if we don't behave in accordance with the ‘Social Norms' and with ‘Personal Responsibility'?

I guess the answer is we let the government take over and we stand in line for our next bowl of soup - but that's OK, because we are entitle to it...even if we don't work for it.

Please read the report and spread the word...take the "Red Pill"...

The Matrix "The choice of the truth"

"This is your last chance, after this there is no turning back.  You take the blue pill and the story ends.  You wake up in your bed and you believe whatever you want to.  You take the red pill; you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the Rabbit Hole Goes.  Remember, All I'm offerin

Much of my real estate success has come from my ability (or luck) to stay a step or two ahead of the changes in the marketplace.  Often I have been ridiculed for my forward thinking actions, like when I started doing BPO's in 2006; or after I listed my first Short Sale in April, 2007 I was humiliated at an office meeting; and my favorite was at the Christmas Party that my then broker hosted and left him making a drunken fool out of himself as he tore into the stupidity of listing REOs.

I guess I'm qualified to be classified as a forward thinker (I started blogging in 2006, too).

HOW TO WRITE OFFERS IN TODAYS MARKET

REALTORS® learn very early in their career how to do the paperwork to write offers in their local jurisdictions that comply with the local rules and broker requirements.

Here in the Hemet - San Jacinto, CA Valley our real estate market today is dominated by bank owned homes, or REO Real Estate.  I say dominated, because over 90% of all closings are indeed REO Listings of homes for sale.  Most of the other 10% are Short Sales or Standard Sales (typically an Investor flip).

Although Short Sales only represent about 10% of the closings, they continue to dominate the active listings in the local MLS; short sales represent approximately 60% of all active listings in the Hemet - San Jacinto, CA Valley.

THE MARKET CONTINUES TO CHANGE

Last month (October 2009) has seen a rash of low appraisals, despite the fact the home prices have been inching up over the last couple of months.  In the last month, my sellers have had to renegotiate contract prices 4 separate times due to low appraisals.

Based on this scenario and my understanding of local real estate I have started to advise buyer agents to do their homework and only submit offers for what they believe the home will appraise for - providing me with actual comps.

REED AND HEED

A well-respected real estate blogger, Broker Bryant Tutas. from Poinciana, Florida published a blog over the weekend, about the importance of Buyers Agents preparing a quality CMA for their buyers.  You can read his insight and preview a sample by reading The Buyer CMA. Do you use it?.

I'm taking his suggestions a step further and advocating that Buyer Agents actually submit the CMA as a part of their offer documentation.

I have suggested this several times over the last week or two with a rash of offers that have come in.  Most have not listened to me but a coup0le have and they are happy today.

The problem is my listings today average a list price of $150K, as were the 2 of the 4 I mentioned earlier that had to be renegotiated - the other 2 were listed at over $225k and both reduced by close to $50K!  But lets focus on the bread and butter $150K deals.

The sad truth is the appraisals are coming in from $125K to $140K.  I have agents calling me as if I have the negotiating power to change the price in the MLS - I don't.  When they follow my queue and submit the documentation to support their offers, the bank has countered back with less that a $1500 difference in the asking price.  When the agents just submit an offer with a low ball offer, that's how the banks look at it - low ball and counter back within $1,000 of list price.

THE NEXT LEVEL

I was particularly impressed with one agent in particular who not only submitted comps but a complete market analysis justifying the offer that was being submitted.  Guess what?  The seller accepted the offer without any additional counter offer on price.

WHAT IS NORMAL?

Personally, I am tired of the whining about when we get back to a "NORMAL MARKET" - whatever that is.  The truth is this is what we got today...so make the most of it.  You can follow my lead of do things the way you have always done them (wasn't it Einstein who said that doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results is the definition of insanity...or something like that)

Looking forward to seeing your next offer for Hemet - San Jacinto Real Estate

Home Inspections are an Important part of the Due Diligence that a first time home buyer or investor should undertake when buying a bank owned (or any other home, for that matter) home in the Hemet - San Jacinto Valley, in CA.

The following report was first published by, Jim Bushart. one of my fellow ActiveRain Bloggers and a Missouri Home Inspector.  He points out several key reasons for a home inspection. 

If you visit his blog, you'll see I did ask a couple of questions that may be considered to be a negative...tell me what you think...

Jim,

This is a good report worth repeating and using a s a useful tool for first time home buyers, which dominate our local market.

The down side...if there is such a thing is if the buyer pulls out, we are not suppose to make that report available to the next buyer.  I understand everyone wants the work, but a report should then become part of the known disclosures for a property.

The other down side, if there is a defect pointed out to the buyer the buyer cannot technically file a claim with a home warranty company.  If the furnace is not working now - why should the home warranty company replace it?  I know it happens, but would that not be considered mortgage fraud?

John

 

 

I know many of my fellow Americans drank the Kool-aid this time last year...just in time for our National Elections...

Not sure what was in it, but just look at the promises that were made then and tell me where we are at today...

Empty promises like these are the reson that most Americans don't trust politicians...regardless of what side fo the aisle they sit on.

I was reading my RISMedia news this morning, courtesy of Lowes, and came across an interesting article about the Obama Stimulus Plan that has a deep affect on anyone earning a regular paycheck with taxes deducted each pay period.

Apparently, back in April wage earners started tor receive an additional $15 to $20 per week in the form of reduced withholding and this is a tax credit that does not have to be paid back.  The problem is that the credit is only good for $400 for a single person and $800 for a married couple and apparently there are a lot of circumstances where more than this has been collected by the wage earner. 

The result will be when it comes time to receive a refund, many tax payers are going to feel disappointed or even cheated (we have such a strong sense of entitlement in this country).  I guess those who traditionally receive a refund may even end up owing taxes.

Being a non-tax expert I almost feel as if I have shared too much aready - so please do yourself a favor and check ou the article and see if it applies to you, your family members or even pass it onto your clients...no one wants to have that kind of surprise.

The article can be found here: 

Stimulus Payout May Come Back to Haunt You at Tax Time  By Eve Mitchell