Enjoy my best photos and links to my photo sharing websites on my photo website.
Friday, March 14, 2008
My new photo post card
Enjoy my best photos and links to my photo sharing websites on my photo website.
Beyond the Headlines
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Welcome to the Market Matters Advisory, your weekly guide to responding to the market.
Yahoo! Real Estate
Housing: Best time to buy in four years
Valuations—the difference between a home’s actual price and what it should cost—are the
lowest they’ve been in four years.
Keep this in mind…
• More than 88 percent of 330 housing markets surveyed showed price declines and
improved affordability during the last three months of 2007, according to bank National City
Corp. and financial analysis firm Global Insight.
• The survey covered home valuations during the last quarter of 2007, but there's reason to
believe that valuations are even more favorable for buyers today, according to the authors
of the report.
• The biggest gains in affordability occurred in California, Michigan and Florida, which are
areas that also have been some of the hardest hit by foreclosures. Those states registered
43 of the 50 biggest price declines.
To read the full story, please visit
http://promo.realestate.yahoo.com/housing:-best-time-to-buy-in-four-years.html
CNN Money
Home equity slips below 50 percent
Homeowners’ debt on their houses exceeded their equity for the first time since the
Federal Reserve Board began tracking it in 1945, falling below 50 percent.
Keep this in mind…
• Today’s low equity is a result of lax lending standards during the housing boom, when
many buyers were able to obtain mortgages with little or no money down. Although some
of those buyers could not afford their homes and lost them to foreclosure, some could
afford houses—with help from alternative loan models—and but for those loans would
have found homeownership beyond their reach.
• The statewide median price of existing single-family homes for January 2008 was
$430,370. The last time we had a comparable median price was in March 2004, when the
median was $428,060. Homeowners who bought their homes before 2004 will likely have
more equity than those who purchased since 2004.
• The median home price in January 2003 was $336,210. Comparing the current median to
five years ago, it is now 28 percent higher. People who buy a home and hold onto it at
least five years will usually come out ahead.
• A house is not a stock. It’s always been first and foremost a place to live, to raise a family
or to retire. Even when prices were falling, home buyers who pursued a buy and hold
strategy—retaining the property at least five years—have almost always come out ahead
in the long-run. Historically, the value of single-family homes in California has increased
about 9 percent a year.
To read the full story, please visit
http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/06/real_estate/home_equity.ap/index.htm
North County Times
Buyers jump into murky housing market
While low interest rates and depressed home prices have started to attract entry-level
home buyers, the typical home in San Diego County remains out of reach for the average
family.
Keep this in mind…
• Bleak economic news is usually followed by a downward turn in mortgage interest rates,
but despite some fairly poor news this week about banks selling securitized loans at fire
sale prices, the overall average of 30-year fixed-rate mortgages eased by just two basis
points (.02 percent). The fact that news that would usually produce a significant decline in
mortgage rates instead preceded only a modest drop could be a sign that rates may soon
go up. Consumers should take advantage of low interest rates while they last.
• According to home-finance corporation Freddie Mac, U.S. house prices have climbed 6.2
percent a year over the past 30 years.
• The recently passed economic stimulus package raised the conforming loan limit to up to
$729,750 in some areas. So-called "expanded conforming" loans should provide some
borrowers with an opportunity to finance or refinance at lower rates than the jumbo market
may currently offer, provided borrowers can meet the guidelines for a conforming loan,
which are usually more restrictive than jumbo market underwriting criteria.
To read the full story, please visit
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/03/09/news/top_stories/1_04_993_8_08.txt
In other news:
Wall Street Journal Online
It's a buyer's market for home buyers
http://podcast.mktw.net/wsj/audio/20080310/pod-wsjymm/pod-wsjymm.mp3
Marketplace
Fed Takes New Steps on Credit Crisis
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/apheadline_detail.php?story_id=D8V8M6I80&group=ap.online.he
adlines.business
Business Week
Trade group says commercial loans safe
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8VARNI01.htm?campaign_id=alerts
March 13, 2008 Page 5 of 5
What You Need To Know About the Market
• Because the U.S. dollar is weak right now and home prices are low, many foreigners are buying
American real estate. Consider a REALTOR® who has partnerships with mortgage brokers or
attorneys who work with international clients.
• In many markets, there are a lot more homes for sale than there are buyers. That means you should
be able to negotiate a better price than if there were multiple buyers for each house for sale.
• Some sellers are offering buyer incentives, such as help with closing costs or down payments.
Many new home builders are making features that used to cost extra standard in order to move
inventory.
• Consumer confidence is showing signs of inching higher. According to the ABC
News/Washington Post consumer comfort index, sentiment increased four points to -30 in the week
ending March 9. This marks the second consecutive weekly gain. Over its 19-year history the index
has ranged from a high of 38 in January 2000 to a low of -50 in February 1992.
Brought to you by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Welcome to the Market Matters Advisory, your weekly guide to responding to the market.
Yahoo! Real Estate
Housing: Best time to buy in four years
Valuations—the difference between a home’s actual price and what it should cost—are the
lowest they’ve been in four years.
Keep this in mind…
• More than 88 percent of 330 housing markets surveyed showed price declines and
improved affordability during the last three months of 2007, according to bank National City
Corp. and financial analysis firm Global Insight.
• The survey covered home valuations during the last quarter of 2007, but there's reason to
believe that valuations are even more favorable for buyers today, according to the authors
of the report.
• The biggest gains in affordability occurred in California, Michigan and Florida, which are
areas that also have been some of the hardest hit by foreclosures. Those states registered
43 of the 50 biggest price declines.
To read the full story, please visit
http://promo.realestate.yahoo.com/housing:-best-time-to-buy-in-four-years.html
CNN Money
Home equity slips below 50 percent
Homeowners’ debt on their houses exceeded their equity for the first time since the
Federal Reserve Board began tracking it in 1945, falling below 50 percent.
Keep this in mind…
• Today’s low equity is a result of lax lending standards during the housing boom, when
many buyers were able to obtain mortgages with little or no money down. Although some
of those buyers could not afford their homes and lost them to foreclosure, some could
afford houses—with help from alternative loan models—and but for those loans would
have found homeownership beyond their reach.
• The statewide median price of existing single-family homes for January 2008 was
$430,370. The last time we had a comparable median price was in March 2004, when the
median was $428,060. Homeowners who bought their homes before 2004 will likely have
more equity than those who purchased since 2004.
• The median home price in January 2003 was $336,210. Comparing the current median to
five years ago, it is now 28 percent higher. People who buy a home and hold onto it at
least five years will usually come out ahead.
• A house is not a stock. It’s always been first and foremost a place to live, to raise a family
or to retire. Even when prices were falling, home buyers who pursued a buy and hold
strategy—retaining the property at least five years—have almost always come out ahead
in the long-run. Historically, the value of single-family homes in California has increased
about 9 percent a year.
To read the full story, please visit
http://money.cnn.com/2008/03/06/real_estate/home_equity.ap/index.htm
North County Times
Buyers jump into murky housing market
While low interest rates and depressed home prices have started to attract entry-level
home buyers, the typical home in San Diego County remains out of reach for the average
family.
Keep this in mind…
• Bleak economic news is usually followed by a downward turn in mortgage interest rates,
but despite some fairly poor news this week about banks selling securitized loans at fire
sale prices, the overall average of 30-year fixed-rate mortgages eased by just two basis
points (.02 percent). The fact that news that would usually produce a significant decline in
mortgage rates instead preceded only a modest drop could be a sign that rates may soon
go up. Consumers should take advantage of low interest rates while they last.
• According to home-finance corporation Freddie Mac, U.S. house prices have climbed 6.2
percent a year over the past 30 years.
• The recently passed economic stimulus package raised the conforming loan limit to up to
$729,750 in some areas. So-called "expanded conforming" loans should provide some
borrowers with an opportunity to finance or refinance at lower rates than the jumbo market
may currently offer, provided borrowers can meet the guidelines for a conforming loan,
which are usually more restrictive than jumbo market underwriting criteria.
To read the full story, please visit
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/03/09/news/top_stories/1_04_993_8_08.txt
In other news:
Wall Street Journal Online
It's a buyer's market for home buyers
http://podcast.mktw.net/wsj/audio/20080310/pod-wsjymm/pod-wsjymm.mp3
Marketplace
Fed Takes New Steps on Credit Crisis
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/apheadline_detail.php?story_id=D8V8M6I80&group=ap.online.he
adlines.business
Business Week
Trade group says commercial loans safe
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8VARNI01.htm?campaign_id=alerts
March 13, 2008 Page 5 of 5
What You Need To Know About the Market
• Because the U.S. dollar is weak right now and home prices are low, many foreigners are buying
American real estate. Consider a REALTOR® who has partnerships with mortgage brokers or
attorneys who work with international clients.
• In many markets, there are a lot more homes for sale than there are buyers. That means you should
be able to negotiate a better price than if there were multiple buyers for each house for sale.
• Some sellers are offering buyer incentives, such as help with closing costs or down payments.
Many new home builders are making features that used to cost extra standard in order to move
inventory.
• Consumer confidence is showing signs of inching higher. According to the ABC
News/Washington Post consumer comfort index, sentiment increased four points to -30 in the week
ending March 9. This marks the second consecutive weekly gain. Over its 19-year history the index
has ranged from a high of 38 in January 2000 to a low of -50 in February 1992.
Friday, March 7, 2008
Foreclosure "crisis" is overblown
How do you know what you are hearing on the news is accurate? Doesn't everything you hear about have to be taken in a greater context to fully understand how it affects you and your family, community and area?
Here's some information about the current state of home ownership and foreclosures presented from various media sources, provided by the California Association of Realtors:
http://www.car.org/library/media/papers/pdf/BeyondtheHeadlines_March.pdf
Here's some information about the current state of home ownership and foreclosures presented from various media sources, provided by the California Association of Realtors:
http://www.car.org/library/media/papers/pdf/BeyondtheHeadlines_March.pdf
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