Fremont Real Estate Blog: A guide to Fremont, Union City and Rivermark Santa Clara homes and real estate market

Fremont’s Five Districts - An Overview

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:55:58 -0700

I’ve gotten a number of requests from prospective homebuyers to provide more information about Fremont. So, I’ve put together a brief overview below that describes the five districts (Mission San Jose, Irvington, Niles, Centerville and Warm Springs) that comprise Fremont. Each district has its own atmosphere and unique attributes, making the Fremont experience greater than the sum of its parts.

See my previous post for more information about the Mission San Jose district.

As well as being a great place to find a home, the Irvington district is Fremont’s largest shopping area, with everything from small locally-owned shops and restaurants to the mainstream shopping stores available at The Hub shopping center and Gateway Plaza, both located close the BART station. Irvington is also home to Lake Elizabeth at Central Park. The park and recreation area was recently ranked by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of the best urban outings in the Bay Area (March 5, 2009).

The Niles district, another of Fremont’s historic districts, was Hollywood before there was a Hollywood. It is the famous home of many of the Charlie Chapin and Bronco Billy films. Proud of its history, Niles is a community within a community. Located along Mission Blvd (old Highway 238) and tucked below the green foothills, the homes are both some of the oldest and some of the prettiest in Fremont. Niles is the small town inside the big suburb. It is also one of the best places to find antiques in the East Bay.

The Centerville district is currently one of the more affluent of Fremont’s districts and has one of the most diverse ethnic populations in Fremont. Containing the newly developed Ardenwood neighborhood, with the high scoring Ardenwood elementary school, it has become the go-to place for many working professionals looking to buy their first home. Centerville is rich with multi-cultural pride.

Warm Springs at the south end of Fremont is the newest of the five districts and the closest to Silicon Valley. But simply calling it a great place to live while you work in San Jose or Mountain View would overlook its own importance in the Bay Areas economic boom. Within the Warm Springs district, you’ll find the headquarters of many high-tech companies including Nielsen Norman Group, Corsair Memory and Lexar, Elitegroup Computer Systems, Asus and many of the country’s top bio-tech firms. The district is also home to NUMMI, Fremont’s largest employer (a joint automobile manufacturing plant for General Motors and Toyota). With well respected elementary schools, Warm Springs has become a highly desirable place to raise children. Warms Springs will soon have a new Asian Shopping center near the interchange between highway 680 and highway 880. What’s more, it is now home to the large Pacific Commons Shopping Center.

Including all the schools listed above, Fremont is served by the Fremont Unified School District. Fremont has 29 elementary schools, five junior high schools and six high schools: Mission San Jose High School — which was ranked as the 49th best high school in the nation; American High School, Irvington High School, Washington High School,Robertson High School and Kennedy High School. Alsion Montessori Middle/High School and California School for the Deaf are also located in Fremont as well as a number of private schools. For advanced studies or summer enrichment courses, Stanford, the UC Berkeley main campus and University East Bay in Hayward are within 35 minute drives. UC Berkeley also has an extension campus located in Fremont. And as I mentioned, Ohlone College is a top community college with highly regarded nursing, computer science and green technology programs.

Fremont is a wonderful place to live with a great deal of home buying opportunities currently available. As a Fremont realtor with over 15 years of experience here, I’d be glad to provide you with more information on the Fremont real estate market. Feel free to get your Fremont homes search started on my website today.

Rivermark of Santa Clara: Community Overview

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:21:42 -0700

The Rivermark community in Santa Clara has quickly become the hot spot for homebuyers who are looking for stylish, easy to maintain homes that are located in the South Bay: the heart of the Silicon Valley. Housing in Rivermark is divided into six development areas: The Arbors, The Park, The Promenade, The Greens, The Landings, and The Glen. There are plenty of home buying opportunities in the community, including some attractively priced R.E.O. properties.

The 152-acre planned community of Rivermark in Santa Clara was developed in 2002 and was designed to be a city within a city. The pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods encourage bicycling and walking throughout the community. Retail space, parks, a new elementary school and library, apartments, condominiums, townhouses, and houses were all built into the community plan, allowing the residents and families to enjoy all the benefits of living and working in theSouth Bay without the hassle of their normal commute.

The Village, the community’s center for shopping and dinning, features retail, specialty food shops, an elegant and high-end restaurant, a 150-room hotel and the popular 60,000-square-foot upscale Safeway supermarket.

SCHOOLS:

Santa Clara, CA is served by the Santa Clara Unified School District (SCUSD) and, specifically, the Rivermark community is now home to the newly-built Don Callejon School (K-8). Don Callejon School services those within the boundary of Hope Drive; Montague Expressway; Guadalupe River; and Lafayette Street. That being true, the SCUSD has an open enrollment policy, allowing families to enroll their children in any school within the district. Don CallejonSchool expects to have approximately 700 students (400 in elementary grades and 300 in middle school grades). The school will grow to fill the capacity as the number of students in the area increases.

More than 30 acres of the Rivermark community are devoted to open space and recreation. A trail system connects the community to the Guadalupe River Trail while smaller neighborhood parks provide relaxing, recreational areas to the residents. Public services include a police substation and a nearby fire station.

Contact me about finding your new home in this innovative, people-friendly community in Santa Clara, CA.

Fremont’s Mission San Jose Area: An Overview

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 13:52:00 -0700

I’ve gotten a number of requests from prospective homebuyers to provide more information on the various communities that I have expertise on. So, I’ve put together a brief overview for Fremont’s Mission San Jose district below. Please feel free to contact me with any questions that you may have.

Fremont has 201,334 residents situated over 92 square miles, according to the census of 2008, making it the fifth largest city on the Bay Area. Its established itself as the Bay Area home of many high-tech and bio-tech firms and is known for its attractive, manageable commutes to other tech companies located in the South Bay and on the Peninsula. In addition, San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley are accessible within 60 minutes on BART.

The historic Mission San Jose district is a very desirable area for home buyers and families. It is located just off of Highway 680 and sits below the foothills of Mission Peak. The district prides itself on maintaining a small town feel – for example, the Olive Festival is held annually, Independence Day parades bring residents out onto the sidewalk in summer, and in winter a Christmas tree lighting event is held close by. Ohlone College (see more below) is the hub of activity in the area and a number of small commercial businesses, retail shops, and eateries are within walking distance. The Mission San Jose district is a short drive away from The Hub shopping center in the Irvington district, Gateway Plaza near the BART station, the newly developed Pacific Commons Shopping Center in the Warm Springs district and NewPark Mall in the city of Newark.

The Mission San Jose district is also home to cultural and community centers like the impressive Smith Center for Performing Arts at Ohlone College and the Olive Hyde Art gallery. In addition, Fremont has plenty of indoor and outdoor recreation areas. The popular and highly ranked Lake Elizabeth (Central Park) with golfing, a dog park and sporting fields will soon house a new water park opening in May of 2009. Additionally, residents and visitors enjoy Quarry Lakes Park, sections of the Alameda Creek trail, Fremont Teen Center, Fremont Senior Center, and of course the mountainous hiking trails of Mission Peak.

As for schools, Fremont is served by the Fremont Unified School District, and families flock to homes in the Mission San Jose district to enroll their children in Mission San Jose High School, ranked as the 49th best high school in the nation. Known locally as “Mission” or MSJ, the high school was founded in 1964 and is known for its strong academics, sending 93% of its graduates to post-secondary schools. For advanced studies or summer enrichment courses, Stanford, the UC Berkeley main campus and Cal State University East Bay in Hayward are within 35 minute drives. UC Berkeley also has an extension campus located in Fremont. Ohlone College (a community college) with highly regarded nursing, computer science and green technology programs has its main campus located in the Mission San Jose district.

Fremont and the Mission San Jose district are wonderful places to live with a great deal of home buying opportunities currently available. Feel free to contact me to learn more about the real estate market in this wonderful city.

Union City, CA: Community Overview

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 14:15:53 -0700

I’ve gotten a fair number of requests from prospective homebuyers to provide more information on the various communities that I have expertise on. So, I’ve put together a brief overview for Union City below. Please feel free to contact me with any questions that you may have.

Union City contains 19 square miles and is a part of the Tri-Cities area, along with Fremont and Newark. The current population is about 73,402 (According to the most recent census). With 45.3% of the 18,642 households having children under the age of 18, it is a good place to raise your family. The city has nicknamed itself “Gateway to Silicon Valley” due to its location in the heart of the Bay Area, with manageable commutes to the various tech companies located in the South Bay, the Peninsula and Fremont. In addition, San Francisco is a manageable commute and accessible within 40 minutes on BART.

In the historic Old Alvarado district of Union City, you can find historical Victorian homes, a small town post office, the Union City Historical Museum and a number of small commercial business, retail shops, and eateries. Local merchants regularly sponsor the Fall Festival, Friday night jazz bands, art shows, and, every weekend, a great Farmers’ Market. The enormous Union Landing shopping center off of Highway 880 has a very broad selection of stores, restaurants and one of the largest movie theatres in the area.

In terms of community facilities, a $25 million Performing Arts Center at Logan High School is currently under construction. The 600 seat performing arts center is scheduled to open later this year and will include a Culinary Arts center as well. In addition, a Union City has plenty of indoor and outdoor recreation areas, including the highly popular Quarry Lakes Park, Alameda Creek Trail, Kennedy Park, The Cesar Chavez Park, Union City Sports Center andDan Oden Swim Center.

As for schools, Union City is served by the New Haven Unified School District, which enrolls approximately 12,800 students from kindergarten through 12th grade. The district is comprised of several elementary schools: Alvarado Elementary School, Delaine Eastin Elementary, Guy Emanuele Jr Elementary School, Hillview Crest, Searles Elementary, Tom Kitayama Elementary School, and Pioneer Elementary. Two middle schools: Alvarado Middle School, Cesar Chavez Middle School (formally New Haven Middle School) and James Logan High School. For advanced studies or summer enrichment courses, Stanford and UC Berkeley are within 35 minute drives. In addition, Union City is a short distance away from the well regarded Cal State University East Bay in Hayward and Ohlone College (a junior college) in Fremont.

Union City is a wonderful place to live with a great deal of home buying opportunities currently available. It is an excellent time to buy a home in Union City and according to information sourced by Trulia.com, the average home price has come down. Feel free to contact me to learn more about the real estate market in this wonderful city.

City of Fremont First Time Home Buyer Workshop on April 21

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:04:30 -0700

The City of Fremont and President Obama want first-time home buyers to achieve their dreams. Now is a fantastic time to purchase your first home.

As part of the economic stimulus package, President Obama signed into law a first-time home buyers tax credit of $8,000. First-time homebuyers who purchase a home this year between Jan. 1 and Dec. 1 may be eligible for the tax credit.

Additionally, The City of Fremont offers loans through its First Time Home Buyer Program of up to $40,000 to eligible homebuyers for down payment assistance

UPCOMING WORKSHOP - CITY OF FREMONT FIRST TIME HOME BUYER PROGRAM

Tuesday, April 21, 2009. Registration is now open.

Registration is mandatory.

Visit the City’s First Time Home Buyer webpage to register for the April workshop.

As I mentioned in my previous post, the City of Fremont First Time Homebuyer Program and CalHFA financing may be able to assist with down payment assistance of up to $67,600 for a Fremont home, provided that you meet certain qualification. According to the City’s website, you are eligible for the program if you:

Attend one of the mandatory two-hour First Time Homebuyer Workshops.
Live or work in Fremont currently, or previously lived in Fremont.
Have not owned a home in the last three years.
Meet the income guidelines (see Income chart).
Are able to secure a mortgage and have good credit.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: In February 2009 the city published a list of lenders in Fremont (available here) which are approved for the Fremont First Time Home Buyer Program. The list includes select branches of: Bank of America,Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Countrywide Home Loans, Diversified Capital Funding and Jacinto Mortgage Group.

To see if you are eligible, or for further information, please contact me. I’d be glad to provide you with more information on making your home ownership dream a reality.

Lake Elizabeth Featured as “One of the Best Urban Outings” by SF Chronicle

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 21:49:28 -0700

The San Francisco Chronicle recently listed Fremont’s own Lake Elizabeth (Central Park) as one of the best urban outings in the Bay Area (March 5, 2009). The park is set on 450 acres with an 83 acre lake. It is noted for its relaxing, natural atmosphere, walk-ability, separate dog park, boating, and ample bird watching. The park grounds also contain a number of sporting fields, a golf course and a water park opening in May of 2009.

As a Fremont realtor, I understand how appealing and important access to an open park setting can be to those who are looking to buy a home here. The park is a short driving distance from most Fremont homes and many are within walking distance. The surrounding area has a good mixture of residential homes and shopping at Gateway Plaza and The Hub.

Families who live near the park send their children to high ranking schools like: John Gomes Elementary School, William Hopkins Junior High School and top performingMission San Jose High School. The homes are also conveniently located near important public services like the Fremont Main Library, Fremont Teen Center, Washington Hospital and the Kaiser Permanente campus, California School for the Deaf and the Fremont Police station.

Lake Elizabeth is a wonderful park and is one of the many things that make Fremont and great place to live. Its great to see it receiving the applause it deserves.

You can read the full SF Chronicle article here.

Veena Grover, RE/Max | http://www.FremontHomesTeam.com | 510.378.7546

October homes sales data: REO sales continue to drive market

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 08:24:04 -0800

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.

• Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.

• In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.

• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

In my view, given the seasonal slowdown, there are very good deals to be had here in the Bay Area. Furthermore, with an incoming Obama administration that is more likely to push for policies helping homeowners facing foreclosure, I believe that the number of homes entering foreclosure will gradually stabilize over the next year and then decline. Regardless, its certainly a good time to start searching online for properties that interest you. You can do this search and get automated email updates on homes that match your criteria on my website (FremontHomesTeam.com), by clicking here.

October homes sales data: REO sales continue to drive market

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 16:56:07 -0800

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

• Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.

• As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

October homes sales data – foreclosures continue to drive market

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 16:53:54 -0800

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.
Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.
In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.
As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

October homes sales data – foreclosures continue to drive market

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 16:53:13 -0800

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.
Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.
In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.
As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

October homes sales data – foreclosures continue to drive market

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 16:53:01 -0800

MDA DataQuick released October 2008 sales data for Santa Clara and Alameda counties. The full report can be found here, but I thought I’d summarize some of the key takeaways:

Median house price in Santa Clara County was $515K, down 34% vs. Oct 2007. However, the number of single-family homes sold was 1022, up 24% vs. the prior year.
Although there is certainly some depreciation in the value of homes, a major factor behind the decline in median home prices is the number of REO property sales. In both Alameda and Santa Clara County, there was a marked increase in sales of these bank-owned homes. For example, over 33% of the home sales in Santa Clara County last month had been foreclosed on within the prior 12 months. By contrast, in October 2007, REO properties comprised less than 4 percent of sales.
In addition, sales of higher-end homes declined as a percentage of the total. For example, only 11% of homes last month were sold for greater than $1M. By contrast, in October 2007, almost 30% of homes sold at the $1M+ level.
As we head into the holiday season now, we can expect the market to hit its seasonal slowdown, as inventory (number of homes for sale) and demand quiets down until the new years.

Loan Modifications on the Way for Fannie & Freddie loans

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 08:21:44 -0800

The Bush Administration announced yesterday a new loan modification program in conjunction with 27 loan servicers, including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. This could enable mortgage relief (lower payments) for several hundred thousand homeowners who are at least three months delinquent on mortgages that are owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Here’s how it can work:

Lower the interest rate
Stretch out the term of the loan to 40 years
Lower the amount of the loan
The underlying goal is that monthly payments should not exceed 38% of a family’s monthly income.

While the plan is certainly helpful, it isn’t as broad as the plan championed by the FDIC chairwoman, Sheila Bair. This is because the Bush administration plan focused on the Fannie and Freddie guaranteed loans, which are “conforming” loans (i.e., less risky vs. subprime loans). Bair’s plan had called for a $50BN government plan to modify loans.

I suppose one’s preference here depends on how far they believe the government should extend itself in terms of loan modifications. Regardless of your views here, based on President-elect Obama’s previous voting record on real estate or loan-related issues, I expect that a much broader loan modification program will work its way to Congress once the new term gets rolling in 2009.

Expect Obama To Support Housing Recovery Legislation

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 18:57:27 -0800

There’s been a lot of discussion among the media, economists, and even us real estate agents in Fremont, about what President-elect Obama will do about the housing market. Based on a review of Obama’s previous legislative record, senior leaders of National Association of REALTORS stated that Obama has generally supported legislation favorable to homeowners. Fore example, while in Illinois, Obama supported tax credits for property owners. As a U.S. senator, he’s argued for a stronger Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and voted for the economic stimulus bill that increased loan limits in high-cost areas, like Fremont.

From a Bay Area real estate perspective, I believe increasing the FHA-backed loan limit is really important. The 2008 conforming jumbo loan limit in the Bay Area is $729,750, making it difficult for buyers of higher-end properties to get financing. This limit expires on December 31, 2008, when the lower conforming loan limit of $625,500 takes effect. It certainly explains why higher sales volume has recently been in the mid-range properties. For example, in September, the median price of a home sold in Alameda County was $389K, vs. $555K the previous September. Simply put, the more difficult financing environment has resulted in more unsold inventory (less sales) in higher-end properties, but more sales in mid-range properties, where loans are more easily available.

Veena Grover | RE/Max Accord, Fremont CA | http://www.FremontHomesTeam.com

California Calls for 90 Day Moratorium on Pending Foreclosures - Will it Work?

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 17:36:08 -0800

As part of a proposed economic stimulus package, Gov. Schwarzenegger proposed a 90-day freeze on pending foreclosures in California. According to MDA DataQuick, California had 80,000 foreclosures in Q3 2008, so the proposal by Gov. Schwarzenegger is meant to slow down the pace and provide homeowners with more time to find and re-finance with other, more affordable loans. However, as an incentive to provide more affordable loans, lenders can avoid the 90-day freeze under the plan if they proved they were actively rewriting loans so that homeowners could afford to make lower payments and avoid foreclosure.

From a Bay Area perspective, while I applaud the government’s effort to call for a “cooling off” period from the time a homeowner receives a default notice from a bank, in terms of actually staving off foreclosure, the key will be a recovery in bank lending. Lets not forget that a lot of homeowners facing foreclosure in the Bay Area signed up for interest-only loans, which generally carry about a ½ point premium vs. a fully amortized loan these days. So, it all comes down to what type of risk the banks are able / willing to take – if they are willing to creatively work with homeowners to refinance during the 90 day period, great. If not, the 90 day period could simply be delaying the inevitable foreclosure for the homeowner.

Veena Grover | RE/Max Accord, Fremont CA | http://www.FremontHomesTeam.com

Find Your Voting Location on Google Maps

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:29:34 -0800

Very cool feature launched recently by the folks at Google Maps, which allows you to find your closest Voting Location. Simply type in your home address, and voila, you will see on the map the name and address of the closest facility. Simply go to http://maps.google.com/vote and type in your address. I tried this for my address in Fremont and Google was absolutely correct in pointing out the closest location. Kudos to the Google Maps team!

On a related note, Google Maps has a feature to see real-time election results as they come in. Click here to check it out.

Buying an REO Property in Union City: Where to Start?

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:18:24 -0800

I’ve received a few requests for info from potential buyers of REO properties in Union City and Hayward on how to get started. In terms of where to start, luckily there are many websites which allow you to customize a property search and specify “REO properties”. For example, on my website, there’s a webpage titled “Find a Home“. Once you’ve selected the county you’re interested in from the drop-down menu, do the following:

Select Union City and click “add”
Enter the price range of the Union City properties you’re interested in.
Next to “Special Conditions”, there’s a checkbox for “REO/Bank/HUD/Corp Owned”. Check that.

Email updates: Whenever a property becomes available that meets your criteria, you will get an automated email update providing you with a one-page summary on the property.

Use Internet Maps to get an overview of the property: Google Maps has a “Street View” button at the top right, which is imagery of an entire street taken by a car. You can get a real feel for the neighborhood this way. Zillow and Trulia provide previous sale price history on many properties. Finally, if you are looking at this from an investment (renting) perspective, you should check out HousingMaps, which is a map showing the various rental listings from Craigslist in whatever area you choose.

Income Generating Properties in Fremont and Union City?

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:27:06 -0700

I had a buyer recently ask me about whether home prices in Fremont and Union City had declined to the point where they could generate positive cash flow right away. Except in rare exceptions, the answer is no. I wanted to at least highlight a scenario for you by looking at recent home sale prices in the Fremont and Union City area:

Example: Non REO property in Union City: 4BR, 2BA home in Union City; 2200 sq. ft, 4500 sq.ft lot, 10 years new: $700K

Assume a 6.6% interest rate on a 30-yr fixed rate, but tack on an additional 0.5% applicable as an investor. Total interest payment = 7.1%.

With a down payment of 20%, the loan balance would be $560K. Multiplying this by the 7.1% rate results in a monthly mortgage payment of $3750.

A glance on Craigslist and HousingMaps to view rental property prices in Union City tells us that a rental property of this size would rent for about $2800/month. (Note that I don’t see a rental home in the same community, so I’m looking at comparables). Net-net, there’s a delta of $950/month on the rent, or about $11K per year. Factoring in property tax of 1.2% would result in another $8.4K, or about $19K per year.

In the event you could get such a property at a 20% discount or more as an REO, then certainly the financials get more interesting and rent gets closer towards mortgage payment. But at current price and interest rate levels, as you can see, one would run a cash flow loss on a monthly basis and as an investor, would bet on an increase in home values in the future or a decrease in interest rates to re-finance at more attractive terms.

Requirement for California High School Students Affects API Scores (& Fremont Property Values)?

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 12:07:22 -0700

Now that the school year is underway, I was reviewing the website of Mission San Jose High School for announcements. Apparently, this is the first year in which students will be required to pass the California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) in order to graduate. Students must earn a score of 350 or higher on each part of the CAHSEE (language and math) in order to pass the exam. Students take the test in 10th grade – those students who don’t pass are allowed to re-take the sections of the exam that they failed when they get to 11th grade, and in 12th grade if necessary.

The CAHSEE is important due to the impact that a school’s pass rate will have on its all-important API (Academic Performance Indicator) score. These API scores can be found for any school on GreatSchools.net. API scores significantly influence home prices in Fremont and even more so in the Mission San Jose area. In addition, the CAHSEE scores will factor into a school’s Academic Yearly Performance (AYP) score, which is mandated by the federal “No Child Left Behind” act and apparently may impact the amount of funding that a school receives as well.

Fremont Unified School District Reinstates Bus Service for Junior High & High Schools

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:22:24 -0700

I wanted to pass along that the Fremont Unified School District (FUSD) board recently voted to reinstate bus transportation for secondary schools (Junior highs & High schools) for the 1st semester of the 2008-09 school year. In Fremont, this means that from the beginning of the school year through January 30, 2009, students will have the option to take the school bus. I'm glad to see the Fremont school board to decide this despite the budget shortfalls we've had at the state level. The time and money savings that the bus provides to most parents, not to mention the fact that it can be self-funding in many ways, makes it a worthwhile service, in my opinion.

Which students qualify? The criteria is simple: any junior high students living beyond a distance of 1.5 miles from the school and any high school students beyond a walking distance of 2.5 miles. Note, however, that there was talk of raising the annual fees from $350 to $700, given the massive increase in fuel costs. There was a meeting yesterday to discuss this, but I have not seen any update as yet. Will update this post when I do find out.

Mission San Jose High School Continues to Outperform Fremont Schools on Test Scores

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:11:15 -0700

The latest test score results for Fremont indicate that the Mission San Jose area schools continue to outperform the rest of the Fremont Unified School District. Although this has rung true for quite some time with Fremont schools (and is reflected in price premiums for Mission homes), the internet provides us with more transparency on this. For example, GreatSchools.net obtains state test scores for each grade, in each subject (e.g., math, English) and then calculates a rating from 1 to 10 for each public school in the state. An overall GreatSchools rating of 10 for a school means that the percentage of students that scored at the “proficient” level (or higher) on the test is in the top 10% in the state. By contrast, a GreatSchools rating of 6 means that the percentage of students that scored “proficient” (or higher) on the test is in the top 50% in the state (but not the top 40%). Note that “proficient” is defined by the state education department, not GreatSchools.

You can see the full report for Fremont schools here. Note that you can get more information like parent reviews (and write your own reviews) for each school. A few highlights worth mentioning are that all high schools (Washington High School, Mission San Jose, Irvington, American High and Kennedy) are essentially the same when it comes to class size (30-33 students). On the API (the test performance), Mission San Jose comes in well ahead of the pack, about 15% ahead of Irvington. Irvington comes out ahead of American and Washington High School by about 5%. American and Washington High School come in 10% higher than Kennedy High School.

Note that this information does not necessarily mean that the highest scoring schools are “better”, as this does not factor in parent feedback, school activities, or teacher quality. Instead, its simply a quantifiable way of seeing test scores, which is just one way of assessing a school.

Stop Wasting Your Online Ad Dollars: Branded Ads Don’t Work, Search Ads Do

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 08:56:30 -0700

I read a very interesting article on RedFin’s blog this weekend – it mentions that the RedFin team did a usability study and observed the interaction of users with its website. It turns out that with regard to online “branded” (i.e., “banner” ads), the users didn’t even see these ads! Apparently, living in a world where we are bombarded with ads daily, from freeway billboards to coffee shops, we seem to have developed the ability to tune these out. Perhaps it’s the same ability that teenagers use to tune their parents out?

This is not to say that online banner ads are useless – certainly, it is a billion dollar ad market for a good reason, namely increasing awareness of one’s brand. But in real estate, given that most of us are individual businesses, the ROI on a banner ad isn’t justified in my opinion. By contrast, a search ad (e.g., an ad that shows up when a user searches for you on MSN, Google, Yahoo, etc.) has a higher ROI. This is because you only pay when someone actually clicks on your ad. If you assume that 1%-2% of people actually click on your search ad, then you are saving a lot of money compared with having to pay every time your ad is shown, regardless of whether someone clicks on it (which is the payment model for banner ads).

Financial differences aside, I also wonder how effective a banner ad is for most real estate agents. How much can you really differentiate yourself vs. your competition in a banner ad? In other words, if a user browsing a website comes across your banner ad next your competitors, what motivates them to click on your ad? Chances are, you and your competition have pictures of yourselves, as well as one-line of marketing text. Even if the consumer takes the time to look at your ad, does she really get a sense of what makes you stand out? By contrast, with a search ad, there is one big difference: intent. The user wants to find out more about a topic (e.g., homes on Main St.) and your ad shows up because you have something important to say about that topic specifically (e.g., a text ad stating “3BR / 2BA home for sale on Main St., Great schools, Open Sun 1-4pm”). In my opinion, this search ad would succeed because you are helping the user with valuable answers to his search.

What are your thoughts and experiences with online banner ads and search ads?

Search Engines- is MSN the Comeback Kid?

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 09:14:50 -0700

I was reviewing my website statistics recently and noticed a meaningful uptrend in traffic from MSN.com vs. Google. Don’t get me wrong, Google provides substantially more traffic to my website than MSN or Yahoo do. But, within the past month, I have seen an uptick in traffic from MSN. I think there may be a few reasons for this – namely, that MSN offered a “cashback” program for searching on their site last month. That is, if you searched for, say, “digital camera” on MSN and clicked on an ad with a participating merchant, you would get a discount on the camera if/when you buy it from the e-commerce site you end up on. As you might expect, this drove traffic to MSN higher during that period. But, what’s been nice to see is that apparently, some of those new users stuck around on MSN and are doing different searches now involving real estate. I was curious to see if others are seeing a similar trend?

Secondly, I’ve noticed that MSN Live Maps has become integrated with MSN.com searches. So, if you search for “realtors in San Jose CA”, you’ll notice that on top of the search results are 3 local listings of realtors in the area. Essentially, MSN is doing a nice job by inferring that the searcher is looking for a name, address, and phone number rather than 10 links to different realtor websites. I hadn’t noticed this before, but imagine that it has benefited small businesses (like realtors) by surfacing their websites higher than they would otherwise have appeared in the “regular” search engine results.

It was nice to see the improved results from MSN, which has traditionally been the distant 3rd in the US search engine market. Will keep my eyes open and let you know if I see other interesting trends here going forward.

Useful article on 8 REO Tips to Buying Foreclosures

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:26:52 -0700

I’ve gotten a few requests recently to post a list of tips for buyers in the market for REO properties. Specifically, the request was understand the process of how to write offers for these foreclosure properties. After doing a bit of internet research, I came across a clear, comprehensive list from About.com, which provides a list of 8 REO tips to Buying Foreclosures.

In short, the article lists the 8 tips as:

1. Get the property financial records (the bank’s purchase price on the property and the mortgage balance on the home).

2. Review comparable sales, including pending sales. As an agent, I can help you get information on pending sales. This is especially important given that typical comparable sales data may not accurately reflect the current market reality.

3. Analyze the listing agent’s REO sales (specifically, the sale-price to list-price ratio).

4. Ask about the number of offers.

5. Submit a pre-approval letter from the same bank that owns the property.

6. Getting banks to agree to repairs is hard. Don’t ask for them before your offer is accepted.

7. Try to shorten the requested inspection period. This is an important consideration in the acceptance of your offer.

8. Offer to Split Fees. Some banks will not pay for transfer fees. Offering to split may improve the acceptance of your offer.

I think #2 is especially important and is something that an agent with REO experience can help with. The internet is a wonderful tool to search listings info and see sale price history. However, in the quickly moving REO world, the latest pricing data is especially important. Your agent should be able to reach across his/her network of real estate agents and quickly get the latest pricing info on pending sales whenever possible. This will generally increase the chance of a competitive offer and a favorable outcome for your bid.

Useful article on 8 REO Tips to Buying Foreclosures

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 13:26:29 -0700

In short, the article lists the 8 tips as:

1. Get the property financial records (the bank’s purchase price on the property and the mortgage balance on the home).

3. Analyze the listing agent’s REO sales (specifically, the sale-price to list-price ratio).

4. Ask about the number of offers.

5. Submit a pre-approval letter from the same bank that owns the property.

6. Getting banks to agree to repairs is hard. Don’t ask for them before your offer is accepted.

7. Try to shorten the requested inspection period. This is an important consideration in the acceptance of your offer.

8. Offer to Split Fees. Some banks will not pay for transfer fees. Offering to split may improve the acceptance of your offer.

San Mateo County Program for First-Time Home Buyers – Worth Expanding

Veena Grover, Fremont Realtor: Homes for Sale in Fremont & Union City (Re/Max) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 11:44:21 -0700

I just came across an interesting article in yesterday’s SJ Mercury, Square Feet, which reports on an innovative program in San Mateo County called “HEART” that funds first-time home buyers. To qualify, a buyer must have a household income less than $150K, a FICO score of 680 or higher, and the home must be $700K or lower. The key benefit is a second mortgage at a below-market interest rate, which pays for mortgage insurance, some closing costs, and buys down the rate on the first mortgage (which is through Meriwest Credit Union). More details at HEART of San Mateo County’s website.

We need more of these programs in the Bay Area. Its true that many Bay Area counties do have first-time home buyer programs, but based on my understanding of the requirements and benefits, they don’t seem to have the scale of the HEART program. HEART raised money from both private employers and the public sector to fund the program. In fact, the board of directors includes not only public officials, but also executives from construction companies. It’s a win-win: these programs stimulate the biggest driver of demand in the real estate market – first time home buyers, which has “trickle-down” effects that benefit the broader real estate industry: home builders, financers, agents, and more.

In addition to the economic benefits of enabling more first-time home buyers, there’s the more philosophical question – where are today’s young teachers, policemen, social workers and labor force supposed to live? We have this problem across much of the Bay Area. Sure, property values are cheaper in towns like Tracy or Gilroy, but these result in 1-hour plus commutes to where most jobs are. These types of commutes just aren’t sustainable over the long term – there are too many trade-offs to make with one’s family time, social life and time for oneself! The private sector has a lot to gain from having employees nearby – namely, that they’ll probably work more! I’ve heard of companies like Facebook giving a $600 / month rental allowance to employees living in the city of Palo Alto, where the company is based. This is encouraging, but imagine the scale if more large companies (like Intel, Cisco, Google) participated in local first-time buyer prfograms. The scale of these programs could grow tremendously, and the companies would benefit by having more focused, happier employees. There are only so many hours in a day - the longer one has to commute to work, the more tired and less effective that she is likely to be.