Jill's Active Rain Blog

Contra Costa Home Sales Comparison with Last Year

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 13:05:21 -0500

June 2008 Bay Area Home Sale Activity reported in the San Francisco Chronicle show that sales are up in cities that have been hit hard by foreclosures. The chart below shows comparison of number of the sales to last years sales for the month of June and is reporting resale single family residences and condos as well as new homes. To view the complete chart with additional details click here.

Contra Costa County		Sales	Sales % Change
Alamo	94507	14	-39.10%
Antioch	94509	96	74.50%
Antioch	94531	125	145.10%
Brentwood	94513	120	62.20%
Byron	94514	1	-97.10%
Clayton	94517	25	-16.70%
Concord	94518	28	47.40%
Concord	94519	27	42.10%
Concord	94520	38	81.00%
Concord	94521	51	10.90%
Danville	94506	43	-20.40%
Danville	94526	26	-51.90%
El Cerrito	94530	18	-47.10%
El Sobrante	94803	19	72.70%
Hercules	94547	35	20.70%
Lafayette	94549	32	-33.30%
Martinez	94553	40	0.00%
Moraga	94556	22	-8.30%
Oakley	94561	102	85.50%
Orinda	94563	22	-31.30%
Pinole	94564	18	-18.20%
Pittsburg	94565	134	139.30%
Pleasant Hill	94523	33	-29.80%
Richmond	94801	29	45.00%
Richmond	94804	30	-33.30%
Richmond	94805	10	-44.40%
Rodeo	94572	9	80.00%
San Pablo	94806	59	22.90%
San Ramon	94582	81	-36.70%
San Ramon	94583	33	-47.60%
Walnut Creek	94595	29	7.40%
Walnut Creek	94596	19	-9.50%
Walnut Creek	94597	28	-22.20%
Walnut Creek	94598	24	-41.50%

HOW TO BUY A HOUSE FOR YOUR KIDS

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 13:04:26 -0500

Your kids (or family members) need a little help with the down payment to get them into the world of home-ownership. You have a lot of equity just sitting in your house “Lazy Money” and need a place to invest it that will offer security and good potential gains. The stock market is not appealing to you. What do you do?...... Try an equity share!

This a win-win situation that is very satisfying to everyone. Your kids are responsible and need a break to get started. They’ve been throwing money away on rent for years. By becoming a home owner they get stability, tax benefits, and, quite often, lower payments than they were paying in rent.

INVEST In Your Kids…...How Equity-Shares Work

By structuring your equity-share properly, you go on title and have security in your investment. You both share in the appreciation. You do not have to be a landlord. They make all the payments for the mortgage, insurance, property taxes and maintenance of the property, just like a normal home-owner. They can improve the property as much as they want because they OWN the property.

Most equity-shares are structured for 2 or 3 years. After this pre-set time limit your kids will sell or refinance the property and cash you out. If you sell the property, then you select a Real Estate Agent, sell it and split the proceeds after you receive your original investment back. Your kids would also be repaid for any cash they put out for improvements or any reduction in the principal (the loan balance).

You are not charging any interest for the money you put in because you will participate in any appreciation on the property. Additionally, they are not charging for any of the labor that they put into fixing up the property because they will also get a portion of any appreciation.

If they are buying you out, then you get an appraisal (or two, if desired) and decide on a fair market value for the property and refinance it. It’s pretty simple.

YOU CAN CHANGE A LIFE

An equity share can truly change a persons life by helping them get their start in the world. The risk for both parties is usually pretty low and the rewards can be very good—both financially and spiritually.

Keeping Your FICO Score High Forever

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 13:03:15 -0500

Know before you Go! Buy or Refinance.

1. Pay all bills on time each month. 30-day late payment can affect your credit score up to 107 points.

2. Do not quit your Job while in a Real Estate transaction.

3. Do not open or close any accounts, Do not purchase an Automobile (while in a real estate transaction and or credit repair) .

4. If you pay off a credit cards or an equity line of credit, do not close the account.

5. Try to keep your credit card balances below 30% of the High Credit Limit for that card at all times. (Example: if my Visa has a Limit of $1000, than I would try not to exceed $300 owed on that Visa) This will help in keeping your score high.

6. Keep your credit cards active. If you carry No balances each month and if you hardly ever use your credit cards, At least spend 5-20 dollars every 4-5 months.

7. Do not have multiple inquires into your credit.

8. Avoid large money transfers from one account to another or large
deposits/withdraws before and during your Purchase/Refinance.

9. Avoid at all cost using a Consumer Credit Counseling Companies.
(CCC ).

10. Do not carry your Social Security Card on you; Keep in a safe location at home or safe deposit Box.

11. Share this information with your friends and family.

Good Credit = Great Dreams

Foreclosed Properties in Central Contra Costa County

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 13:01:13 -0500

The following chart shows the current real estate market data available today from the Contra Costa MLS. Click on a link to view the current listings of REOs (real estate owned or bank owned properties) in Concord, Clayton, Martinez, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, Lamorinda area, Brentwood, Bay Point, Antioch and Pittsburg.

All Homes for Sale on the MLS - 7/28/2008
	Single Family Homes	Condo/Townhomes
Concord	389	288
Concord REOs	83	92
Short Sales	141	79

Clayton	46	9
Clayton REOs	4	0
Short Sales	6	1

Martinez	156	44
Martinez REOs	22	7
Short Sales	17	8

Walnut Creek	185	132
Walnut Creek REOs	3	16
Short Sales	11	29

Pleasant Hill	100	24
Pleasant Hill REOs	7	3
Short Sales	17	7

Lamorinda	209	44
Lamorinda REOs	5	2
Short Sales	5	2

Bay Point	199	37
Bay Point REOs	87	20
Short Sales	77	11

Pittsburg	547	60
Pittsburg REOs	253	41
Short Sales	196	6

Brentwood	394	16
Brentwood REOs	106	7
Short Sales	164	5

Antioch	918	132
Antioch REOs	441	82
Short Sales	327	32

Pay Down your Home Mortgage in a Fraction of the Time!

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Sat, 31 May 2008 23:53:41 -0500

I recently started using the Money Merge Account System which will effectively pay down my mortgage in a fraction of the time. This is an amazing interest reducing stand-alone software program which helps manage your income and expenses to pay down your home mortgage. This is not a new concept, but it is relatively new to the United States. Please view the video on Stephanie Scwartz's web site regarding United First Financial. If you are interested in this program, please call me for more information at 925-207-8992.

Proposition 8 - Potential Property Tax Relief For Contra Costa County Home Owners

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 28 May 2008 11:26:08 -0500

The re-assessment of property taxes is due!! I talked with the assesor's office this morning and they would like the decline in value form filed by the end of May 2008. However, the form may be filed later, but the assessment may be delayed. Please call or email me for a free comparative market analysis to accompany your assessment review request.

What is Proposition 8 and How does an Contra Costa County Home Owner Exercise Their Rights? Proposition 8 passed in November of 1978 and amended Proposition 13 to reflect declines in value. As a result of this the Assessor is required annually to assess the value of property. As a home owner you would fill out a form indicating the decreased value of your home based on comparables of sold property in your neighborhood. If the assessor agrees that value has declined, your property taxes would be re-assessed at the lower property value.

Decline In Value 2008-2009 Form:
Prop 8 Form

he Assessor’s Office also stated that they are aware of a “decline” with current market values and are therefore reassessing the value of properties that sold in 2005, 2006 and 2007. The Assessor’s Office will be sending out a “Notice of Assessed Value” to property owners in July of 2008. If the owner receives this “Notice” and does not agree with the value they then have until September to file an appeal or have the option of completing the 2008-2009 “Prop 8 Reassessment” form.

A recent article regarding Proposition 8 was in the San Francisco Chronicle: Click Here to View

1 Year Comparison: Contra Costa County Active Listings vs. Pending Sales

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Tue, 27 May 2008 23:07:08 -0500

The real estate market in Contra Costa County is showing definite signs of recovery. The table below shows that east county (Pittsburg, Antioch, Brentwood and Oakley) is improving dramatically with an average of 2.4 months of inventory on 5/27/08 compared with an average 9.7 months of inventory on 5/29/07. These figures are compiled from the Contra Costa Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service.

I received a phone call from Barbara Hernandez, staff writer for the Contra Costa Times last week. She published the front page headlines, "Home sales inch up in April" on 5/21/08. The article mentions the month-to-month jump was the strongest for any March/April in DataQuick's statistics, which date to 1988. View the article here..

	May 29, 2007			May 27, 2008
	Active	Pending	Months of Inventory	Active	Pending	Months of Inventory
Walnut Creek	304	93	3.3	347	93	3.7
Pleasant Hill	162	47	3.4	135	57	2.4
Concord	779	99	7.9	728	210	3.5
Martinez	275	46	6.0	216	72	3.0
Clayton	84	20	4.2	59	33	1.8
Pittsburg	505	55	9.2	591	196	3.0
Antioch	1100	105	10.5	1116	429	2.6
Oakley	360	41	8.8	338	164	2.1
Brentwood	652	62	10.5	471	218	2.1

Clayton Art & Wine Festival this weekend

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 01 May 2008 07:57:48 -0500

The 13th annual Clayton Art & Wine festival is this weekend, May 3rd and 4th starting at 10am each day. This is a great way to spend the day (or part of it anyway) tasting wines, perusing the arts and crafts and visiting with family, friends and neighbors. And of course enjoying the ongoing live music.

My favorite artist last year was playing music of the Andes. I purchased several CDs to give as gifts and wish I had kept one for myself. Hopefully, that musician will return with his wonderful music.

On Sunday, I will have an open house from 1 to 4 pm just a few blocks away from the festival at 108 Mt. Whitney Way in Clayton.

3 Year Analysis of Single Family Homes in Antioch, CA

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 15:09:17 -0500

I received a call this morning from Carol Lloyd, who is writing an article for the San Francisco Chronicle Business section regarding the real estate market conditions in Antioch, CA. She found my web site because I have been reporting real time market stats (example to the left). She asked me to analyze the data in more detail for her article. I went to the Contra Costa County MLS and searched all single family homes sold since 1/1/05 through 3/31/08.

The number of homes sold in the 1st quarter of 2008 has increased to 204 compared with the 1st quarter of 2007 at 176. However the price per square foot has decreased dramatically with $154 in the 1st quarter of 2008 compared to $260 in the 1st quarter of 2007.

108 Mt. Whitney Way, Clayton

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 11:18:58 -0500

This lovely Dana Hills home sits on approximately .23 acre of beautifully landscaped, level property. The grandeur begins as you enter the tile entry and hallway opening into the living room ~ featuring soaring ceilings and a separate formal dining room. The downstairs includes a full bedroom and bathroom. Upstairs features a spacious master suite with a beautifully appointed master bathroom.

Enjoy fine living at the base of Mount Diablo

5 Bedroom, 3 Full Bathrooms
Spacious Living Room
Formal Dining Room
Eat-in Kitchen
Comfortable Family Room with Fireplace
2481 Sq.Ft. (per public record)
Landscaped Front & Backyard
with Automatic Sprinklers
.23 Acre (per public record)

~ $755,000 ~

www.108MtWhitneyWay.com

New Clayton Community Park

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 11:11:35 -0500

New Clayton Community Park in beautiful downtown Clayton, CAfeaturing a children's playground area, two gazebos and public restrooms. A new summer concert series will start in June 2008 and go through September 2008.

Real-time Bay Area Market Reports are Available

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 12:59:18 -0500

I am pleased to announce that I have signed up with Altos Research to provide my clients with real-time market research reports.

These reports show the stats for the central east bay real estate market. If there is a particular city that you need information on, please email Jill Cruey.

My Contra Costa Real Estate Profile on Active Rain

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 13:45:22 -0500

I attended the Real Rain networking group on Monday, March 17th in Walnut Creek, CA. It's a great way to have local support for blogging and networking with other professionals. Brad Andersohn and Mike Mueller mentioned changing your Active Rain profile to offer information as you would on your professional web site. I spent some time this week on my profile. Check it out: Jill Cruey's Active Rain Profile.

Sold and Pending Homes in Clayton

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:21:44 -0600

As of January 30, 2008, 35 homes have sold in the City of Clayton since September 1, 2007 with an average sales price of $711, 345, an average square footage of 2,201 and an average cost of $323 per square foot. Pending homes have reached a high of 18 today with 57 active property listings compared to December 17, 2007 with pendings at 9 and 79 active property listings. Click here to view the pending chart.

This information was compiled from the Contra Costa County MLS (Multiple Listing Service).

Nwakuche wins bid -- Old West style favored by the Clayton City Council

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 11:18:58 -0600

The Clayton City Council approved the plans from developer and Clayton resident, Uzoma Nwakuche for a 2 story old-west style building with retail on the ground floor and residential rental units upstairs. This Oak street building will add more than 15,000 square feet of retail space to the town center. Read more about this on the Clayton Pioneer's web site.

Clayton's Housing Market Compares to 1 Year Ago

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 20:13:01 -0600

On January 3, 2007 Clayton's housing market had 54 active properties on the MLS with 9 pending. The comparison with today's number is very close with 55 active properties and 11 pending. The following chart shows the comparisons for Walnut Creek, Concord, Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Clayton, Pittsburg and Antioch. The only other city here that is similar in numbers compared to last year is Martinez with 169 active properties today and 27 pending.

	Active 1/02/07	Pending 1/02/07	Active 1/02/08	Pending 1/02/08
Walnut Creek	175	75	230	54
Pleasant Hill	95	30	116	14
Concord	435	110	662	100
Martinez	198	42	169	27
Clayton	54	10	55	11
Pittsburg	297	55	511	35
Antioch	675	115	1095	94

Homes sold in Clayton, CA since September 1, 2007

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Sat, 22 Dec 2007 17:28:18 -0600

28 homes have sold in the City of Clayton since September 1, 2007 with an average sales price of $701, 043, an average square footage of 2,146 and an average cost of $327 per square foot. This information was compiled on December 22, 2007 from the Contra Costa County MLS (Multiple Listing Service).

Address	Sale Price	Square Ft.	Sold $/SqFt
3405 COYOTE CIR	$420,000	1252	$335
25 CLARK CREEK CIR	$435,000	1457	$299
628 JULPUN LOOP	$465,000	1235	$377
1378 Shell Lane	$501,500	1430	$351
1167 SHELL LN	$519,000	1709	$304
4707 KELLER RIDGE DR	$545,000	1554	$351
1469 INDIANHEAD CIR	$555,000	1366	$406
54 KARKIN PL	$560,000	1904	$294
1203 BUCKEYE TER	$590,000	1639	$360
48 MARQUETTE CT	$593,800	1471	$404
180 MOUNTAIRE PKWY	$600,000	1858	$323
7 EL PORTAL DR	$610,000	1895	$322
332 SACLAN TER	$613,000	1904	$322
3021 WINDMILL CANYON DR	$620,000	2143	$289
13 Atchinson Stage Court	$650,000	1926	$337
209 MOUNTAIRE CIR	$712,000	2171	$328
27 London Ct	$715,000	2324	$308
205 EL PUEBLO PL	$735,000	2390	$308
14 MOUNT LEE PL	$775,000	2481	$312
407 GRENACHE CIR	$790,000	2052	$385
10 MT MCKINLEY CT	$800,000	2566	$312
8 WHITT CT	$835,000	2600	$321
1801 YOLANDA CIR	$865,000	3533	$245
1125 PEACOCK CREEK DR	$895,000	3030	$295
4297 Morgan Territory Road	$925,000	1995	$464
717 ACORN DRIVE	$995,000	3079	$323
106 FOREST HILL DR	$1,085,000	4076	$266
8 Pardi Lane	$1,224,900	3040	$403
28 HOMES	$19,629,200	60080	$327
AVERAGES	$701,043	2145	$327

Annual Chirstmas Tea with Mrs. Claus & Santa

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 11:56:02 -0600

Children and parents will be delighted on Saturday, December 8, from 11am to 2pm with a visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus. The event will include photos with Santa who will be outside at the Clayton Community Library. Visiters will be invited inside to have tea, coffee, milk and goodies in the company of Mrs. Claus who will present each child with a gift. Children under the age of 12 are free. $1 admission for all other visiters. This is event is sponsored by the Clayton Business Comminutiy Association.

13 Year Sales History for Contra Costa County

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 17:56:12 -0600

Linda Moss of First American Title in Walnut Creekprepared this information regarding the stats for resale property transfers for Contra Costa County.

Timing the Real Estate Market

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 17:54:43 -0600

I attended a fantastic real estate training class on 11/17/07 at Tommy T's in Pleasanton, CA. The class was taught by Rick Geha co-owner of the Pleasanton Keller Williams market center and one of the prominent teachers at Keller Williams University. I loved Rick’s comment about the current real estate market: “We know when the real estate market has hit bottom when the prices start coming up.”

One of the best investment strategies is to buy when the market is soft, not when it's racing forward perhaps toward a peak. It's also a time when you'll find the least competition from other buyers, most of whom will wait to buy until the market has already turned.

Don't forget to consider the tax advantages of home ownership when considering whether home ownership makes sense for you. Generally, property taxes and interest paid on mortgages up to $1 million on your primary residence can be deducted for income-tax purposes. Restrictions apply, so consult your tax adviser before making a move.

What do you need to do to prepare for a new home purchase?

Get your finances in order. Your credit reports are an ongoing look at how you manage your finances. You must know exactly what your credit reports say about your financial history before you apply for a mortgage, because the reports play an important role in the mortgage approval process and in determining your new interest rate and other loan terms that a lender offers you.

Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 09:33:20 -0600

The U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means approved the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Bill Legislation which would prevent families from “double whammy” of tax liability on foreclosures. Under current tax law, debt forgiven following mortgage foreclosure or renegotiation is considered income for tax purposes, resulting in tax liability for individuals and families. The new legislation, H.R. 3648, if passed would provide relief to those families by permanently excluding debt forgiven under these circumstances from tax liability.

Please contact your state senators directly and tell them to support H.R. 3648. This is a vital step for the housing and real estate industries to recover.

California Senators contact info:

http://feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactUs.EmailMe

http://boxer.senate.gov/contact/email/policy.cfm

3 bedroom, 2 Bath, Concord, CA

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 00:35:39 -0500

Jill Cruey | Keller Williams Realty | 925-207-8992

OPEN SATURDAY 1 - 4 PM

Jill Cruey, Realtor
(925) 207-8992

3021 Citrus Cir, #100
Walnut Creek,
CA 94598

3722 CHAPARRAL COURT, CONCORD
RV / BOAT PARKING ON SIDE YARD

This pristine Dana Park home has a light and airy floor plan. The side yard has a paved and covered double-gated parking area for an RV or boat. Enjoy the peace and quiet in this desirable neighborhood and home located on a cul-de-sac. Lease option possible.

3 Bedroom, 2 Bath ~ Single Story
Central Heat & Air
Family Room with Cozy Fireplace
Bright Open Floor Plan
Dual Pane Windows
Cul-de-Sac Location
Tile Roof
Beautiful Backyard
2 Car Garage

~ $570,000 ~

www.3722ChaparralCourt.com
jill@crueyhomes.com

Prop 90 may make a come back to Contra Costa County

Jill Cruey (Keller Williams Realty) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 00:22:07 -0500

Gus Kramer, Contra Costa County tax assessor, met with the Contra Costa Realtors in Motion ON Tuesday, 9/11/07 to promote his idea of bringing Proposition 90 back. This is great news for homeowners in other areas of California who are over the age of 55. It enables homeowners to purchase a home in Contra Costa County and transfer their current tax basis. Mr. Kramer wants to bring back Proposition 90 for a period of five years to (hopefully) strengthen the Contra Costa real estate market by attracting age 55 or older home buyers.

Many homeowners over age 55 are hesitant to move because they may owe nothing, or next to nothing, on their longtime family home mortgages. Buying a new home may make their property taxes double, or even triple if they buy a new home today.

Proposition 60 is a state law and exists in Contra Costa to do this same thing, but for those already in Contra Costa moving within Contra Costa. Contra Costa does this as an incentive for those retiring, and those scaling down after raising their families in the big homes, to stay in (or come to) Contra Costa. Though the county stands to lose property tax dollars, the county stands to gain significant sales tax revenue.

From the Contra Costa Times: "There are no guarantees that reinstating Prop. 90 will make a big difference, but it could. Kramer envisions a two-year sunset for Prop. 90, which is when forecasters expect the real estate market to regain its health. If any problems occur in the meantime, supervisors could cancel the policy on short notice. With few downside threats and the potential for considerable benefits for county residents, we encourage Contra Costa supervisors to reinstate Prop. 90 homeowner assessment transfers from out of the county. It's an experiment that deserves a try."

To support reinstatement of Proposition 90, please call or write to your County Supervisor: District I John Gioia 11780 San Pablo Ave., Ste. D El Cerrito, CA 94530 510-374-94530 District II Gayle Uilkema 651 Pine St. #108 Martinez, CA 94553 925-335-1046 District III Mary Piepho 309 Diablo Rd. Danville, CA 94526 925-820-8683 District IV Susan Bonilla 2151 Salvio St., Ste R Concord, CA 94520 925-521-7100

District V Federal Grover 315 E. Leland Rd. Pittsburg, CA 94565 925-427-8138