Look at how Orange County Home Prices are Rising Again!
Orange County's overall median home price rose 0.9 percent in September compared to the same time last year, according to stats just released from MDA DataQuick. It's the first annual gain for any month since August 2007.
The number hit $429,000 during September, up from $425,000 in 2008. It is also up slightly from August, which had a median price of $427,750.
O.C. saw a 4.2 percent year-over-year increase in its resale house median in September - this was also the first for any month since August 2007.
"Recent month-to-month and year-over-year gains in the median sale price stem largely from a substantial market shift in recent months: There have been fewer sales of foreclosed homes in lower-cost neighborhoods, and more sales in higher-cost areas," according to the report.
Sales were also up 6 percent in O.C. - 2,828 units were sold in September compared to 2,667 in 2008. The number is also up from August, when 2,790 homes were purchased.
For the Southern California region - which includes O.C., L.A., Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura - the median price was $275,000. The number is unchanged from August, but it is down 10.9 percent compared to September 2008. Yet, it is the smallest year-over-year decline since November 2007, according to the report.
Orange County's median home price was the highest among the six counties measured. Ventura's price of $371,750 was the second highest. By Kristen Schott, OC Metro http://tinyurl.com/ylkwjlm --10-13-09
Here are the links to my TWO October Real Estate Update newsletters:
http://tinyurl.com/3ovyqv
http://tinyurl.com/4b5mes
You may want me to personally show you bank owned, short sale, REPO, and regular non-distressed homes.
So just email me at Debbie@DebbieFerrari.com or call me a few days beforehand and I will oblige, anywhere in Orange County or North San Diego County.---
(Toll Free: 888-547-2942, or South Orange County, 949-463-4111) ----- www.DebbieFerrari.com
September 12, 2009 Orange County Real Estate is Looking Much Better
New normal for home sales: Buyers have the power
Following the downturn in the housing market, lenders started requiring more money up front, higher credit scores, proof of income, and all paperwork in order—quite different than earlier this decade when subprime mortgages were rampant and buyers purchased homes deemed unaffordable by today's standards. For sellers, the standards are different too: Be patient and maybe lower the asking price, because the balance of power has swung strongly to buyers. Many REALTORS®, mortgage brokers, economists, and home buyers across the country say they've noticed a shift in attitudes that they expect will last for years.
MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS
Traditional sellers are finding that the number of offers received is not nearly as high as those received on REO properties, which often receive multiple bids. The negotiation process also differs between traditional sellers today and traditional sellers during the height of the market. According to one REALTOR®, if a house is not being shown, then it is overpriced. The record number of foreclosed homes on the market gives buyers even more leverage.
• Resulting from the credit crisis, lenders now often require much more paperwork and thoroughly review borrowers' credit histories, bank statements, tax returns, and job histories. The average mortgage applications today starts three times thicker than what it was at the start of the housing boom, and often gets thicker as the process moves along. One mortgage broker reports that now lenders want to know everything about the buyer, "It's a true and full underwriting process on every particular loan."
• It is not uncommon nowadays for closings to take 60 days. One reason is because of the adoption of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct (HVCC), which often results in appraisers evaluating homes in areas they are not familiar with and often using comparables that are inaccurate. This has caused delays in closing sales, and in some cases, undermining sales because appraisals are coming in too low.
• Just about everyone in the real estate industry agrees that another dramatic boom-bust cycle isn't going to happen again anytime soon. Albert Saiz, assistant real estate professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, expects that new regulations and a different consumer mind-set will help real estate return to a more traditional cycle. (From: San Francisco Chronicle)
August 24, 2009
O.C. Foreclosures Selling Out Now In Only 3 weeks.
August 24th, 2009, 12:00 pm by Jon Lansner Orange County Register
The biweekly property Orange County housing inventory report by Steve Thomas in Aliso Viejo says this of the number of O.C. distressed properties (homes listed by agents in the MLS system as foreclosures or short sales) • As a percent of all listed homes for sale, distressed properties were 30.0% of the market last week. • 40% of the homes listed for sale under $1 million were "distressed." • 6% of the million-dollar listings were "distressed."
Thomas also calculates a "market time" benchmark tracking how many months it theoretically takes to sell all the inventory in the local MLS for-sale listings at the current pace of pending deals being made. By this Thomas logic, it would take • 2.45 months for buyers to gobble up all homes for sale at the current pace, but • 0.62 months to sell all all listed foreclosures — THAT IS ONLY 3 WEEKS!!!! • 1.88 months for all listed short sales.
August 20, 2009
The median price of an entry-level home in California was $224,180 in the second quarter of 2009; in Orange County, it is $397,890, with a monthly payment of approximately $2,360, including taxes and insurance. Minimum qualifying income for a first-time buyer is $70,880.
In California, the index is up to 67 percent, with an average price of $224,180 and an estimated monthly payment including taxes and insurance of $1,330. The minimum household income required was $39,930, making it significantly less than Orange County.
March 20,2009
If you are waiting for housing prices to hit rock bottom before you buy a home to live in or rent out, wait no longer.
Orange County home prices last month ACTUALLY ROSE for the first time since June, according to DataQuick.
The median selling price was $375,000 — up $5,000 from January but still down 27.9% from a year ago.
For calendar month February 2009, Orange County saw $375,000 median selling price that is 42% below June 2007's peak of $645,000.
Single family homes sell for 41% less than their peak pricing (June '07) while condos sell 46% below their peak in March 2006. Builder prices for new homes are 42% below their February '05 top.
Home prices usually rise in February vs. January. Last time they fell in this period? 1999!
January was the 7th straight month of sales gains vs. the year-ago period. That follows 33 consecutive months where sales failed to beat the previous year's pace
Delores Conway, a real estate economist at the University of Southern California, says home prices have come down 40 % in Los Angeles and Orange County since the mid decade peak.
She notes that those prices, coupled with record low interest rates, mean today's buyers can secure the same monthly payments home buyers enjoyed six years ago.
So please call me and let's go out and find you a home together.
Is this the time to buy or what?
January 27th--New York Times
Don't let the plunging median sales price fool you -- December's Existing Home Sales data has home sellers smiling.
Just one month after falling below the 5-million unit trend line, sales volume roared back by 300,000 homes in December, surprising housing analysts and making a case that this spring's Buying Season could be a competitive one.
Falling home prices helped fuel home sales. Nationally, the median sales price -- the point at which half of all homes sold for more and half sold for less -- was $175,400, down $32,000 from last year.
However, the most important part of December's Existing Home Sales report isn't making headlines.
At December's sales pace, it would now take 9.3 months to exhaust the existing home supply. Last month it was 11.2 months. This means that buyers are competing to purchase fewer homes which, in turn, puts upward pressure on home prices.
This is Supply and Demand at its most basic definition.
Economists have long said that the keystone of housing's recovery will be rebalancing in home supply. Coupled with the all-time low in housing starts, December's Existing Home Sales data signals future strength. -------------------------------------------------------------------
· The most-recent survey from Freddie Mac shows interest rates on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.19 percent last week, the lowest level in 37 years. While lower interest rates have resulted in a dramatic jump in homeowners seeking to refinance, now also is a great time to purchase a home. The lower interest rates also are making mortgage payments more affordable, especially on larger homes that previously may have been out of reach.
· In addition to lower monthly mortgage payments, a lower interest rate also allows more home buyers to qualify for larger mortgages with less income. Generally, a buyer applying for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage loan of $400,000, with an interest rate of 5.5 percent, needs an income of $92,000, assuming a 10 percent down payment. If the rate drops to 4.5 percent, the borrower would need an income of $84,000 to qualify for the same mortgage loan.
· Despite the increase in the number of homeowners who sold their homes at a loss, home sellers who owned their properties for a longer period of time were less likely to experience a loss from their home sale, according to the "State of the California Housing Market 2008-2009" report.
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August 20, 2008: Almost 50% of homes in Orange County that were sold this spring sold for less than their earlier sale price according to Dataquick which says that those homes experienced a median price drop of 27 percent
Thirty-seven ZIP codes had more than 50% of their homes selling for less, and in 82 of the county's 83 ZIP codes, prices dropped.
Zip codes on the coast, where the median home price rose in the first two quarters of 2008, have many homes selling at a discount, with the greatest number being from inland ZIPs.
August 18...You should see this Historic Home. Call me and I can show it to you.... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now here's a piece of Dana Point Real Estate history finally unveiled. The former 11,310-square-foot estate of Edward Doheny (of the Doheny Beach State Park fame and an early settler) will be shown to the public by a Realtor during an open house held Saturday, Aug. 23 and Sunday, Aug 24, 2008. Noon to 5 pm.
Likely this prime Dana Point real estate gem will be shown by appointment afterwards, too.
The home is a four bedroom one including two master bedrooms, four fireplaces, 5.5 bathrooms, a saltwater pool and spa, security cameras and a motor courtyard.
It is located in Dana Point where Camino Estrella ends at Camino Capistrano near the old stone steps to the beach, now the small viewing platform that has been built there overlooking the Dana Point and Capistrano Beach homes fronting the ocean.
If you would like to see this incredible home, which actually is in great condition, call me, Debbie Ferrari, and I will arrange any showing you'd like AFTER Aug 24. Debbie@DebbieFerrari.com | 949-463-4111
As of July 8, 2008, SOUTH Orange County sales are up 115% since the end of 2007!!!! This is for the cities of San Clemente, Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Beach, Aliso Viejo, Rancho San Clemente and Laguna Hills. YES, people are buying bargains now!
As of June 26, 2008, current Market hotspots: Orange County short sales and REO sales currently account for nearly 50% of the pending sales and about 37% of the current listings.
As of June 13, 2008, the past two weeks Orange County sales are the greatest numbers in over 2 years. Inventory continues to fall by an average of about 100 per week, compared to increases of about 200 listings per week at this time last year. Also, the index of how long it would take to sell the existing inventory at the current rate of sales is at its lowest point since August of 2006. Yes, since 2006!!
The Orange County Register says on June 2 the following: "Economists at Global Insight and National City Bank say Orange County housing is now 5.2% undervalued — yes, undervalued. That's the first time this math shows local homes as relative bargains to broad economics since the second quarter of 2003. It's also the largest undervaluation since the final three months of 2002." Great news! Buyers take note!
Smart buyers are sensing bargains and that now is the time to buy. To wit: As of May 17, 2008, the number of weeks required to sell the existing inventory at the current rate of sales is the lowest that it has been since April of 2007, when the market was not yet affected by the sub-prime meltdown.
Trust a 30-year veteran. You'll like visiting my site and finding ALL the MLS homes for sale in Orange County and most of Southern California. Email your Dana Point questions to me, a licensed broker at: Debbie@DebbieFerrari.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Orange County, for the first time in 11 years, the median home price dropped in 2007. The median home price was $618,000, which was down 1.9 percent from the median home price of 2006.
In 2005, 54,000 homes sold in Orange County. But in 2007, the total was cut in half, at 27,000 homes. In the past 20 years, that is the lowest total.
Long time experts in Orange County estimate that prices in the OC were about 10 percent off the June 2006 peak, which means they matched levels seen in 2005.
In 2008, the prices may well drop to 2004 levels, but only on a median level. Great exceptions are found in beach and near-beach communities.
Sure, there have been some big drops for homes with dreadful floor plans, poor locations, such as by a noisy freeway or park, or in some declining neighborhoods in north Orange County zip codes (which had a 7-8 percent drop in median prices). However, Inland zip codes lost only 5.4 percent and homes in mid-county zip codes dropped only 4.4 percent.
The worst losers? Three areas, North, Inland and Mid-County suffered sales drops of approximately 33 percent.
But happy days for some: Coastal areas in Orange County were hardly impacted by the housing bubble bursting.
In the beach cities, starting in the south through San Clemente, Dana Point, Capistrano Beach, Laguna Niguel, Monarch Beach, Laguna Beach, Corona Del Mar, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Sunset Beach, and all the way north to Seal Beach, home prices dropped just 2.9 percent, with sales levels dropping only 18 percent.
In 73 of the County's 83 zip codes, sales fell in 2007. In Santa Ana's Zip Code 92707, sales were off a whopping 62 percent.
The overall gainer in sales volume in 2007? Irvine's 92612 where sales increased 30 percent.
Regarding median home prices, some went UP in 2007. Dana Point saw the median home price RISE by 15.6 percent to over one million dollars in the city's 92624 zip code. Parts of San Juan Capistrano, Huntington Beach and Newport Beach, also enjoyed home price increases.
In Orange County, the cities of Laguna Hills, Ladera Ranch, the eastern side of Santa Ana, eastern Mission Viejo and north Orange had no changes in price in 2007 compared to 2006.
Garden Grove's 92840's zip code showed the leading price drop of 15.3 percent, down to $500,000. Oddly, some normally top neighborhoods in Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, and Irvine had double-digit price decreases, too.
Is the credit crunch terrible in Orange County? Well, it could be a lot worse...Real Data Strategies, a Brea consulting firm, says that 54.6% of homeowners in default emerge from the foreclosure process by bringing their payments current, refinancing, or selling the home and paying off what they owe.
The Pacific West Association of Realtors says that Orange County sales REVENUES for real estate agents dropped by almost 40 percent during the last five months of 2007. And that represents a $3.1 billion drop from the same period in 2006.
This is not so good for real estate agents because only 55 percent of Orange County's active real estate agents took part in one or more sales last year. And half of those had just one or two sales apiece. The other 45 percent had no income in 2007!!
You can expect many agents to drop out of real estate during 2008.
A leading local newspaper reported that historically, housing downturns average 27 months so we may be near the end. And we are told by the housing analysts that we are in the 25th month of the current housing downturn. And so far in 2008, while there has been a significant decline in sales volume, home prices in many areas have continued to show small amounts of appreciation.
The newspaper further believed that with the Fed cutting interest rates, Congress passing bills to aid housing, and more money available for home lending, the financial markets will begin calming down. This down cycle will come to an end, just as they have done since 1970, and an excellent buying opportunity may lie ahead.
Prices in Dana Point are holding firm because buyer demand is so high. In other words, quality and value abound in most homes here and retiring baby boomers who are turning 65 now, love living here at the beach.
All things being equal, prices for beach area and ocean view homes in Dana Point are at a premium over those in nearby San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano.
However, the fact that Dana Point is located just south of Laguna Beach, where you pay an even higher premium for homes, somewhat mitigates the price of Dana Point properties along the coast.
The South Orange County economy is so much better than in the rest of the country, so prices should be rising here at a good pace compared to national averages which is what you generally hear quoted in the national media.
The communities of Monarch Beach and Capistrano Beach are incorporated into the city limits of Dana Point. Buyers should be pre-approved if they want to be taken seriously with an offer.
You can look up prices for homes for sale in Dana Point on the County MLS, accessible through my Web site at DebbieFerrari.com..
Email your questions to me at Debbie@DebbieFerrari.com
ZIP Code: 92672 Approximate Location Boundaries: South Orange County, CA - On the coast, halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego.
Location Characteristics: Dana Point features many homes with fabulous ocean views, wide beaches, a stunning yacht harbor protected by great stone jetties for fishing, and a protected bay for water fun. Much of the city's architecture features a nautical lapstrake siding motif with ocean-oriented symbols abounding on commercial businesses. The harbor, itself, however, is the jewel of the city---a place where you just cannot take a bad photo due to the inherent beauty that a mature yacht harbor brings to an area.
About Debbie Ferrari:
Unlimited MLS searching by the visitors themselves is offered, with the option to get updates automatically by e-mail whenever new homes matching the buyer's search parameters come onto the market. Debbie Ferrari's site has won more truly top real estate awards than any known U.S. Realtor® site. Why? Because it contains boundless local and general real estate information so that a buyer moving to Debbie's area can find virtually anything needed to buy a home. The site has more than 1000 background pages of realty-related information, plus school, civic, social info and pictures of local attractions including aerial and 360-degrees of San Clemente's famous pier and hillside homes, and Dana Point's lovely yacht harbor. Even a video tour of the nearby five-star Ritz Carlton Resort is included. There's even a LIVE 24/7 beachCam showing our beautiful San Clemente beach and pier.
Debbie's sites receive more than 35,000 visitors monthly, which makes sellers happy because most of these visitors are prospective BUYERS who are thrilled to find so much of value.
These reports reflect the views and opinions of their authors and are not necessarily the views and opinions of Realty Times.
