Interest Rates Lower Than Ever

[caption id="attachment_2256" align="aligncenter" width="170"] History Of Interest Rates[/caption]

With Shopping for good deals being the focus of the day I thought it was pertinent to bring up our historic low interest rates. Sure we have heard for some time now that interest rates are low, however, It is one thing to hear it but to see this chart it really brings it home.

The best way to take advantage of these great rates is to be pre-qualified with a a good lender. If you need a recommendation don't hesitate to call us at 760-408-5300 or visit our home loan page on our web site.

Should I Bring My Friends and Family With Me to look At Real Estate?

  

Buying a new place is a very exciting time in every ones life. In fact,  if you are not excited please check your pulse! You want to ask a million questions, you want to see as many places as possible and you want to share it with your friends and family.


On the surface getting in the car and going through a bunch of houses seems pretty simple and straight forward.  The truth is that looking at Real Estate takes concentration. It is a big decision that will impact your life for many years to come. It is crucial that you think about the elements of the purchase that are most important to you. Your “must have” list and your “do not want” lists are just the starting point. Once you are looking at properties that closely match your needs and wants is when you must pay the most attention.

There are a hundred little things that can make a big difference in the quality of life you will enjoy once you make a place yours. Where does the sun come up? Is the neighborhood a quiet one? How will you live in the house? Is the laundry close to the bedrooms? Is the kitchen too big or too small for your cooking needs? Does the master closet seem cramped?

While friends and family may have the best intention are they really going to know the exact requirements you have? More to the point are they going to be a help or a distraction? It is unlikely that they will have the same taste as you. It is equally unlikely that the things that are important to you will be the same things that seem important to them.

Over the years I have seen one or two “tag along” people who were incredibly dedicated, invested and helpful in the process. These were the exceptions to be sure. More often than not I have seen them hinder the process and cause you – the buyer- to miss the finer points of a property. Your Realtor, needs your attention to both convey what is important about the property and to hear your feedback. Extra people are rarely helpful in that process.

The best suggestion is to do your selection alone and then once the decision is made make a trip back to the property to show friends and family why this is the perfect property for you. Then you can share your wonderful new place without worrying about distractions that might keep you from spotting the perfect place.

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2011 Final Sales Numbers IN!

  2011 Sales Statistics

       For The Coachella ValleyArea

9706 total unit sales  Homes/Condos

The year that just ended was a very busy year for Real Estate.  While Short sales and foreclosures made up close to 50% of the market there were still many traditional sales taking place

Counting the Cities from Palm Springs to Mecca we saw 7,338 single family homes sell in 2011.  Almost  a quater of those - 24.05% - sold in 30 days or less.  Another 34.98% - took between 30 and 90 days to sell.

The median sales price for single family homes was $190,750.  Not surprisingly the homes that sold in 30 days or less achieved 97% of their asking price, however the bigger surprise may be that homes on the market for 120 days or more still achieved 92% of their asking prices.

To contrast these numbers with 2010  the percentage of list price achieved went up year over year - in 2010 it was only 93%, so 4% beter in 2011.  The total number of homes sold was down but only by  25 units however, the median sales price was down 15K over 2010 when it was $205,000.

Looking at  Condo sales in 2011:  We saw 2368 total units sell The median price for those was $173,750. Asking price vs. actual sales price percentages were in a tight range between 92% and 94%. The most telling thing in this category was the days on market - or time it took to sell a condo. Almost half 48.3% of the units took over 120 days to sell. Buyer resistance to homeowners fees and more difficulty qualifying for a loan were the primary culprits here.

There were 5 homes sold in 2011 over 5 million dollars in the valley. One at the Hideaway one at Bighorn in Palm Desert and 2 at the Vintage.  The winner for top sales price was a 7.6 million dollar estate in The Madison.

See Luxury Properties In The Desert

With the vastly reduced inventory (only 4858 homes and condos valley wide) 2012 promises to be a very competitive year for home buyers in the Coachella Valley especially in the more popular price points.  Most well priced properties are once again seeing multiple offer situations.

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Personal Service and The Right Questions To Ask?

Are You Asking The Right Questions?

In our self-service world where we pump our own gas, check ourselves out at the grocery store and fix our own drinks at fast food places it is easy to forget the importance and the “why” of personal service.  Service delivered by a professional in their field is enhanced when you understand Personal Service and the Right Questions to ask.

The analogy I often use with people who want to do it themselves is an oil change. I am a reasonably intelligent guy. There is probably a good book published that could tell me exactly how to change the oil in my car, step by step.  But the reality is I don’t want to change the oil in my car. I don’t know how long it would take, I don’t know what tools I will need, I wouldn’t know what to do with the oil once I changed it an on and on. If anything did not seem right I would not have a frame of reference to know if it was typical or not typical. More importantly I would not have anyone to ask, whose opinion I trusted.  I would rather go to the oil change place and pay the fee and have them do it right in about 30 minutes.

So to people who want to sell their home on their own or shop for a home on their own I say “go for it”. It is not rocket science. The information is all out there. If you want to put it all together and understand it and how it applies to you I am sure that can be done.  That is not said tongue in cheek or with sarcasm . I have worked with buyers and sellers who were very devoted to the process and although they worked with me, their grasp of the issues was excellent. However, these people were  the exceptional few  and something tells me that they can probably change their own oil!

To the rest of the world, those of us not up for a do it yourself oil change, I suggest that the value of a professional is to help you ask the right questions.  Providing the framework to structure the questions and the issues you should be asking about.

In the troubled Real Estate market that we are in today knowing the right questions to ask is vital.  Almost everyone I personally encounter has a unique set of issues. There is far too much at risk to rely on hunches or a best guess.   Look for the professional who will help you, educate you, frame the issues for you and lead you to ask the questions.

If the professional you have chosen can't do that for you that is a strong clue that they may not fully understand the issues themselves. When  confronted with a person who simply wants to sell you something that is your first sign that it is time to move on to someone else.

Searching out the professional whose valuable guidance and personal service helps me ask the right questions is the only thing that works for me.

Do You Know The Right Questions To Ask?

Are You Asking The Right Questions?

In our self-service world where we pump our own gas, check ourselves out at the grocery store and fix our own drinks at fast food places it is easy to forget the importance and the “why” of personal service.  Service delivered by a professional in their field.

The analogy I often use with people who want to do it themselves is an oil change. I am a reasonably intelligent guy. There is probably a good book published that could tell me exactly how to change the oil in my car, step by step.  But the reality is I don’t want to change the oil in my car. I don’t know how long it would take, I don’t know what tools I will need, I wouldn’t know what to do with the oil once I changed it an on and on. If anything did not seem right I would not have a frame of reference to know if it was typical or not typical. More importantly I would not have anyone to ask, whose opinion I trusted.  I would rather go to the oil change place and pay the fee and have them do it right in about 30 minutes.

So to people who want to sell their home on their own or shop for a home on their own I say “go for it”. It is not rocket science. The information is all out there. If you want to put it all together and understand it and how it applies to you I am sure that can be done.  That is not said tongue in cheek or with sarcasm . I have worked with buyers and sellers who were very devoted to the process and although they worked with me, their grasp of the issues was excellent. However, these people were  the exceptional few  and something tells me that they can probably change their own oil!

To the rest of the world, those of us not up for a do it yourself oil change, I suggest that the value of a professional is to help you ask the right questions.  Providing the framework to structure the questions and the issues you should be asking about.

In the troubled Real Estate market that we are in today knowing the right questions to ask is vital.  Almost everyone I personally encounter has a unique set of issues. There is far too much at risk to rely on hunches or a best guess.   Look for the professional who will help you, educate you, frame the issues for you and lead you to ask the questions. 

If the professional you have chosen can't do that for you that is a strong clue that they may not fully understand the issues themselves. When  confronted with a person who simply wants to sell you something that is your first sign that it is time to move on to someone else.

Searching out the professional whose valuable guidance helps me ask the right questions is the only thing that works for me.

Developing Trends In Real Estate Buying

[caption id="attachment_995" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="The Variables Of The New Market"][/caption]

A Recent article in US World and News Report breaks down the different demographic groups and analyzes the unique choices and challenges each group has in the current real estate market.

The two most interesting points to me, revolved around 1) GenY (late teen to early 30's age group) losing faith in the value of owning a home and coupled with their interest in living in more urban areas becoming a class of permanent renters and 2) The Baby Boomers in the 45-55 age group unable to sell their homes in the suburbs to downsize. Negative equity and a much smaller pool of buyers to sell to make these homes harder to unload.

My thoughts on the Gen Y group is that if they lock themselves into renting now - later in life they may find that the market has passed them by. As the economy changes, interest rates rise and costs continue to escalate they may be unable to buy or at least unable to buy in the areas they most want to live in.  Not only will this create a permanent class of renters but I wonder about the long term economic impact of,  say 20%, of the population not buying property?

As far as the baby boomers being unable to sell their properties at what they paid for them - this is bound to have a negative effect on the retirement plans of these homeowners.  Perhaps fewer vacation home purchases and a delay of retirement all together will be the result. The article mentions a drop in the interest for retirement centers as people live longer and healthier lives. I wonder what will happen to the suburbs as these properties eventually sell for much less or are abandoned all together.

Styles do change and new things become desirable leaving previous "hot ticket items" in the dust. I remember in the early 1980's I was living in the "suburbs" in a nice home that was built in 1973.  It has 4 bedrooms and 4 baths along with a cavernous living room and a small formal dining room plus an eat in kitchen.  I was pretty comfortable and I thought the house was pretty upscale.  One night in the early summer I decided that I would take a walk through the woods to a new home development that was being built.  In those days homes under construction could be left unlocked and I decided to walk through a few of them.  I recall being completely flabbergasted at what I saw.  There were master "suites" with huge walk in closets and bathrooms as big as my entire bedroom and bathroom put together.  Kitchens were big and roomy not little after thoughts off the dining room. Building styles had begun to change and as we would all soon see this was just my first glimpse of  the new style of home for the 1980's. These days no one would look twice at a home like that,  it is standard issue in the American suburbs.

I believe we are the cusp of another major change in how Americans live and what they want in their homes.  My best take, on the trends cited in this interesting article, are that midsized urban centers with a high quality of life are going to be the "hot" properties in the very near future.  Large suburbs far from amenities and work places will suffer as the next generation of home buyer no longer considers them desirable or in fashion.

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Real Estate Flippers Become Landlords

In the market today serious real estate investors are changing their strategies and many are buying real estate as a longer term investment. More flippers are moving into the rental market for the foreseeable future. This great article from CNN/Money is very accurate and I thought you would enjoy seeing it.



NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- These are the glory days of the residential real estate investor. Low prices, rock-bottom interest rates and stable rental markets have created huge buying opportunities.

"It's awesome right now. I don't think we'll ever see another time like this," said Tanya Marchiol of Team Investments, which has operations in about 10 states but focuses mostly on the Phoenix market.

Read More at CNN MOney

This Month In Real Estate Aug 2010

This Month In Real Estate