time to buy: Demand is rising
- 03/21/08 11:04 AM
This is what I've been blogging about. Here's a snippet from my company's latest Market Time Report, "At the beginning of the year, demand, a snapshot of the last 30 days of escrow activity, was at 944 escrows. Today, demand has increased by an additional 1,139 escrows to 2,083." That is... UP BY 121% What of prices, however? Still low! I think we will have a couple more months before prices start following demand back up. It will depend on how the recently-released new FHA loan limits affect demand for properties in different price ranges. Right now, REOs (bank-owned foreclosures) still lead the market. … (5 comments)
time to buy: Why 2008 is THE time to be buying
- 03/06/08 10:16 AM
It's finally official. FHA loan limits have temporarily been raised to over $700,000. For the first time in a very long time, regular Californians can buy a regular home with a regular (non-jumbo) loan. And prices are down, way down. In some cases, bringing the cost of renting and the cost of buying fantastically close to eachother. Case in point: a 3-bedroom apartment in or near Mission Viejo, according to those available on apartmentguide.com, will run you upwards of $2300. Compare that to a particular condo development I am aware of, whose values have plummeted (due to a high incidence of foreclosures, putting … (0 comments)
time to buy: RATE CUT!!!
- 01/22/08 04:42 AM
The Fed just did something they haven't done since 2001 - changed the Federal funds rate between meetings! Not only that, but they dropped it from 4.25% to 3.5%.Just to put into perspective how serious this is, I should point out that the next meeting of the Fed is a mere week away. But their concerns about the direction of the global economy were such that they held an emergency video conference last night and voted 8-1 to drop the rate 3/4 of a percent effective immediately. If you've been reading for a while, you know what a departure from the norm this behavior is. The Fed … (5 comments)
time to buy: Picking up the pace
- 01/15/08 05:41 AM
Ahh... The verdant hillsides, 70 degree temperatures, buyers calling me up and wanting to see homes... it must be spring! However, even I am surprised with the suddenness of the uptick in activity. In the last 5 days I have been contacted by 3 of my buyers, showed several homes to one, nearly wrote an offer only to have the desired property go into escrow, scheduled showings for another client for next weekend, and had a third client contact me with serious questions about a property they want to see. Now sellers, don't go getting all excited. Yes, it's spring and there's more activity, … (1 comments)
time to buy: What leading indicators have to say about the market - good news for the west!
- 12/28/07 05:18 AM
This article on MSNBC.com talks about how the sales of new homes dropped again in November. Even when we deal in resale homes, it is important to be aware of what the new homes are doing, as they're often a leading indicator for what's ahead in the resale market. Now, I'm not terribly surprised to hear that new home sales dropped last month, because of what happened in the month preceding it, with the mortgage crunch at its worst. October was a terrible month for resales especially, as banks tightened their fists and were very reluctant to release funds, even for sales that … (0 comments)
time to buy: Rents on the rise
- 12/14/07 03:44 AM
We knew this would happen, right? With the real estate market virtually frozen as buyers continue to sit on the fence, the demand for apartments and other rentals is on the rise. According to this article on MSN, the average rent in Orange County has risen 5.6%. Now, this doesn't mean the market is suddenly going to get flooded with first time buyers, but it does mean that the market is catching up, and over time we will see more people deciding they're better off owning. Just for fun, as I do once in a while, I decided to do a quick check … (4 comments)
time to buy: The Fed does indeed cut the rate a 1/4 point
- 12/11/07 05:49 AM
Article here As expected, the Fed cut rates a quarter point in today's meeting. That puts the Federal Funds Rate (the interest rate banks charge eachother) at 4.25%. Interestingly, one of the voting members of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC, or the Fed), Eric S. Rosengren, actually wanted to see the rate drop by half a percent instead of just a quarter. But the statement issued by the Fed expressed concerns that some inflation risks remained. The next meeting of the Fed will come at the end of January. We'll have to see what happens between now and then, but barring any bad … (6 comments)
time to buy: Watch for another interest rate drop today
- 12/11/07 04:21 AM
Well kids, here we are, December 11th, and the last Fed meeting of the year. It is expected (not hoped, expected) that the Fed will drop interest rates again today. The question, of course, is how much? If the Fed wants to play it conservative, they may only drop rates another quarter percent. There may be some justification for doing so, as there have been some inflationary numbers that have come out in the last few weeks. Too big a drop in rates will further hurt the dollar as well (which would be good for American manufacturers, but bad for consumers). However, … (1 comments)
time to buy: Bush discusses plan to freeze certain ARM loans at introductory rates
- 12/05/07 09:48 AM
Original article here Could it be that we're finally seeing some action out of Washington, or is this just more talk? Only time will tell, but the idea proposed here would be very helpful. By freezing interest rates on those loans, people living in those homes not only could avoid running into trouble on their mortgages, but also have no incentive to move anywhere for the next 5 years, which means an inventory reduction as everyone else struggles to get up and out of this down market we've been in. Taking not just any sellers off the market, but the most desperate … (4 comments)
time to buy: Stinky rain
- 11/30/07 04:56 AM
It's raining... it's pouring... the inventory's soaring... Okay, not really. Actually, according to my company's latest Market Time Report, the inventory is dropping as frustrated sellers remove their homes from the market. Demand (the number of homes placed into escrow within the prior month) has increased, after bottoming out in early October, to 1295 new escrows (an increase of 182 escrows!). All this is leading to lower (but still very high) market times, going from 15.96 months at the bottom in October, to 13.31 months today. The question remains - will the holiday market prove to be better or worse than the current … (8 comments)
time to buy: Mortgage interest rates ARE dropping!
- 11/19/07 04:30 AM
I can't believe it's already time to check on interest rates! But, interesting thing... mortgage interest rates are dropping! Here are today's national averages according to MSN Money: Today's National Averages Mortgages APR 30-yr. fixed 6.04% <-----Wow!15-yr. fixed 5.63% 1-yr. adj. 5.77% As of my last posting on interest rates last week, these were the numbers: Mortgages APR 30-yr. fixed 6.21% <-----What a change!!!!15-yr. fixed 5.90% 1-yr. adj. 6.70% November 5th, they looked like this: 30-yr. fixed 6.22% 15-yr. fixed 5.93% 1-yr. adj. 6.80% (Note that the Fed had dropped the Fed Funds rate 1/4% on Oct 31st, so about a week … (4 comments)
time to buy: Real Estate "deals": Like Kohl's or supermarket chickens?
- 11/16/07 08:58 AM
Something passed through my email today that simply blew. me. away. In our company, we get a daily email telling us what our brokerage's new listings are for that day. Today there was one in there that was a SFH, 3/1, in Garden Grove, for LESS THAN $400,000. And we're not talking short sale wishful thinking, this was an REO. Now, I grant you, it's listed as a fixer, and I'm sure it is (becase we all know how many foreclosed-on homeowners leave things looking ship-shape as they're being tossed from their homes, right?), but that kind of discount can pay for … (2 comments)
time to buy: Will stocks crash? What does that mean for real estate? (hint: could be good!)
- 11/12/07 08:10 AM
Today I read an interesting article on MSN Money: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/ContrarianChronicles/StageIsSetForAStockCrash.aspxNow, to some extent, I'm always ready to take the doom-and-gloom articles with a grain of salt because, let's face it, news agencies are in the business of making the world sound like it's going to come crashing down around our ears - it gets you to stick around on their page and read their articles so they can sell ad space on that page.However, let's play along for a moment here. Let's say this guy is right and there really is a bear market for stocks looming on the horizon. What does that mean for … (2 comments)
This is what I've been blogging about. Here's a snippet from my company's latest Market Time Report,;)
;)
