San Diego Real Estate Blog

San Diego Real Estate Blog

2010 San Diego Real Estate Market

I know it’s still 2009 November and it might be a little early for 2010 San Diego Real Estate Market predictions but I think I’ll give it a shot. 2010 in the San Diego Real Estate Market should show more foreclosures than we had in 2009. In 2009 many foreclosures were held off of the market due to the moratoriums. Now that many of the foreclosure moratoriums are lifted the banks are gearing up to get the REO’s off of their books. 2010 in San Diego and many parts of the country will be known as the year of the “Last of the Foreclosure Market”. There will be more foreclosures after 2010 into 2011,  2012 and 2013 but 2010 will be the last big year for foreclosures.

There will still be more short sales and some banks are moving faster on them. There’s lots of talk about the short sales being streamlined and moving through the system faster. In 2010 it might just be a lot of false hope in this area. I hope I’m wrong and we see the short sales as a whole (not just select banks) move through the system fast and to a sale but it might just be a lot of hype. Systems like REOTrans are setting up to do short sales but I’ll believe the push towards short sales over foreclosures by the banks when I see it.

For homebuyers in 2010 it should be a delight with more inventory coming into the San Diego Real Estate Market. In some price ranges like the lower end first time home buyer prices under $400,000 there still will be a fight with other buyers to get the homes. There are way too many buyers and investors in the under $400,000 range in many areas of San Diego County that will keep this price range in very short supply in 2010. The upper end in non-coastal areas will still slide a little lower in 2010. We’ll see how this worked out in 2011.

If  you need help buying or selling a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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I just got finished watching an excellent report on Channel 10 News and I wanted to share it on my Blog because I think it’s worth watching. The show was a half hour and this is only one of the segments. It was very informative about San Diego real estate, auctions, loan modifications, and investment properties.

This story is called:

Builders Default On Land, Able To Buy It Back Cheaper At Auction

http://www.10news.com/video/21522316/index.html
 
Lauren Reynolds
10News I-Team Reporter
_____________________________________________________

If  you need help buying or selling a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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I read a recent article titled: Realtors® Urge Congress to Act Now to Extend Homebuyer Tax Credit. In the article the National Association of Realtors included some facts about how many first time home buyers were helped into their new homes by the tax credit which will end on November 30, 2009. I know it’s helped here in the San Diego Real Estate Market and many of our clients have taken advantage of the incentive. 

Below is an excerpt from the article: 

The National Association of Realtors® is calling upon its 1.2 million members to urge Congress to extend the successful homebuyer tax credit into next year. 

Since its inception earlier this year, the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit has brought 1.2 million new buyers into the market—350,000 of whom would not have purchased a home without the credit, according to NAR. The credit is due to expire November 30. 

“Now is the time for Congress to keep this recovery going by extending the tax credit through 2010 and making it available to more homebuyers. We have all seen how the credit has been a spur to bring homebuyers into the market, and have seen the beginnings of a real recovery in the housing market. Housing has always led this nation out of economic downturns, and can do so again,” said NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth. 

Realtors®, the leading advocates for homeownership and housing issues, will be writing to their Senators and Representatives to tell them of the successes with the tax credit thus far and to press them to extend and expand it now. 

For the entire article please visit Realtor.org 

If  you need help buying or selling a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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I Googled San Diego Real Estate this morning and saw the top rated spot was a news article from the Union Tribune, Real Estate Expert: San Diego at Leading Edge of Recovery. The Real Estate Expert they site in the article is Lawrence Yun the Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors. Yun is known for making many blunders and erroneous predictions in the past. Check out http://www.lawrenceyunwatch.blogspot.com/ for some in depth research on Yun’s other predictions and faux pas. I’m a big fan of laying all the facts out on the table for anyone buying a home in San Diego County. A prediction like this headline needs to have all the facts including the ones behind the scenes. 

The article Real Estate Expert: San Diego at Leading Edge of Recovery bases the recovery on rising prices and sales. Yun states that there is only a 2.5 month inventory of homes for sale and new home construction sluggish. He said that the demand is strong. In an excerpt from the article Yun confesses: “He began with a confession about how he missed the real estate bubble of 2004-06. Surely, the system had enough checks and balances to avoid a runaway market, he thought at the time. “I was clearly wrong,” he said.” My concern now is what else is Yun overlooking through assuming that others have checks and balances in place.  

In the UT Article, “He also predicted that foreclosures will continue at high levels for the next 12 months because of the weak economy. But unlike last year, he said this year’s foreclosures are being snapped up in many markets, including San Diego.” The market in many areas of San Diego is saturated with many short sales. Many of the short sales have homeowners in them not making mortgage payments and in the foreclosure process while trying to short sell their home. I think the foreclosures at high levels will carry on well past 12 months. Related Blog Post : http://www.responsiblelending.org/mortgage-lending/tools-resources/new-foreclosures-by-state-for.html  

Many agents and asset managers speak of the tidal wave of foreclosures that are coming. I wonder why the banks are holding back all of the foreclosures that should be on the market. If the foreclosures are being held back and not put on the market for sale then there is a false sense of inventory. They are foreclosed on or will be soon but the homes are intentionally not being made available to home buyers. Why? Maybe this is to stabilize and firm up the market. But is this real or false stabilization? 

The question is by doing this is it creating another problem of false values like the bubble we just came out of. I don’t know but the information needs to be out there for potential home buyers so they have all the facts when buying. Let’s face it, when NAR says something the news and the public listens. Let’s make sure they have all the facts not just the talking points for getting buyers to buy homes. 

San Diego Real Estate Blog

There are many foreclosures because of the Foreclosure Moratorium that are waiting to be put on the market for sale by banks, asset managers and REO agents. The foreclosure moratorium here in San Diego County as well as most areas of the United States has kept homeowners in their homes through the 2008 holidays and then extended into 2009. Now that we’re well into 2009 there are many wondering why hasn’t the banks released the foreclosures. Many of them are vacant and the buyers are looking for new foreclosures to buy. In fact there are so many buyers here in San Diego they are starting to get discouraged in some San Diego markets and price ranges on the lack of inventory. There are also multiple offers on many homes sometimes exceeding 30 offers.

Some say the foreclosures are being held off the market because the banks are waiting to see if the Obama administration will subsidize the banks for their toxic assets. If that’s the case one of two things will happen the government “our tax dollars and our kids and grandkids tax dollars” will bailout the banks once again and then the foreclosures will come onto the San Diego market or the administration wont bail them out and the foreclosures will come on the market. Either way if this is the hold up let’s make a decision already because my buyers are getting real tired of waiting.

The word here in San Diego is that there are buyers galore and not enough homes for sale in some areas and some price ranges. Mostly first time home buyer price ranges. The inventory is filled with REO’s that are heavily damaged and needing lots of work or short sales with many offers and slow moving negotiators at banks. I HOPE by summer the Obama administration will CHANGE what’s going on.

If  you need help buying a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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The National Association of Realtors® NAR reported that the February 2009 sale of existing homes in the U.S. including single family homes, condos, town homes and co-ops rose by 5.1% from the 2009 January sales numbers. This is great news for the real estate market especially here in San Diego. The Southern California Real Estate Market has seen a huge influx of buyers in early 2009. Some of this could be due to the great $8,000 Tax Credit for First Time Home Buyers and the $10,000 New Home Buyers in California. I am working with a lot of investors in the San Diego Real Estate Market and so are many other Realtors® I know.

This news is also coupled with the news of median home prices of existing homes across the nation has dropped 15.5% from February 2008. Buyers should delight in the fact that prices are low and interest rates are also down. San Diego REO or foreclosed homes in lower price ranges are getting multiple offers and are even having appraisal problems when selling because comps are lower than the new sales. These are good signs and investors and home buyers “especially new home buyers” are out in force in the San Diego area. The new foreclosures “dubbed the Next Wave” are hitting soon and from what I see the buyers will be there to gobble them up.

San Diego in 2009 should be a year of high volume sales!!!

If  you need help buying a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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The San Diego Housing Commission or SDHC has several home buyer assistance programs for San Diego home buyers. Some of the different home buyer assistance programs include deferred loans, grants for down payments and closing costs, tax credits, and opportunities to purchase homes at below market rate prices. This San Diego home buyer assistance program allow a home buyer to purchase a home anywhere in the City of San Diego. This means that the area must start with the Zip Code 921. This encompasses a huge area of San Diego and includes thousands of homes currently for sale. 

Most of these home buyer assistance programs in San Diego are for first time home buyers except for the For Sale Affordable Homes Program. A San Diego First Time Home Buyer is defined as a buyer that has not owned any real estate in the previous 3 years. There are also maximum purchase price limits and area median income restrictions as well.

Some of the programs are:

* 3% Interest Deferred Loan
* Grants for Down Payments and Closing Costs
* Mortgage Credit Certificates (MCC). Can be used for San Diego bank owned properties.
*  For Sale Affordable Homes

For more information on the San Diego Home Buyer Assistance Programs please visit the San Diego Housing Commission Web Site.  http://www.sdhc.org/hafirstimebuyer1.shtml

Also Visit:

California $10,000 New Home Tax Credit

$8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

If  you need help buying a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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All Information is believed to be correct but not guaranteed.

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San Diego - First Time Home Buyers Only – 8000 Dollars !

The $787,000,000,000 stimulus bill signed into law has some benefits for first time home buyers. In the bill signed by Obama there is an $8000 first time home buyer tax credit. This $8000 amount was sized down from $15000 in the original version of the stimulus package. Here in San Diego County California and rich foreclosure environments like Chula Vista in South County San Diego welcomes this first time home buyer $8,000 tax credit incentive.

Some of the details are that the home purchased must be the first time home buyers principal residence. There is a cap of $8,000 if the purchase price is higher than $800,000. A first time home buyer in San Diego or anywhere in the U.S. would be someone who has not owned a principal residence for 3 years. This will only apply to home buyers buying in 2009 so if you’re sitting on the fence of San Diego home buyers this could be the thing that gets you down off the fence and back in the market.

There are also income limits that state single buyers need a modified adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less to qualify for full credit and $150,000 for married couples. If buyers make more income than the amounts stated they could be eligible for reduced credits. Make sure you talk to your accountant about this. The $8000 tax credit is refundable. Buyers will have to own the home for at least 3 years if they want to capitalize fully on the tax incentive. The tax credit will have to be returned to the government if they sell early. There are situations that will be exceptions to this rule.

Make sure you contact professional tax consultants for full factual information on this $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit.

If  you need help buying a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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I spent some time today researching San Diego median home prices in 2009 compared to what they were in 2008. I found a great link that shows the median price from January 2008 to January 2009 and shows the difference in median prices in percentages. My theory based on real estate trends and experience in San Diego County has held true. I have been stressing the fact that many coastal areas will be hit the hardest despite what many so called experts have been saying. I have also said that areas like newer Chula Vista like EastLake, Rolling Hills Ranch, San Miguel Ranch and Otay Ranch have taken a huge hit early in this San Diego real estate downturn and won’t be hit nearly as bad as some of the areas that have a false sense of security. What I mean by false sense of security is that many coastal areas in San Diego just because they’re close to the beach are said to be by some real estate agents immune to a real estate downturn. Nonsense!

Some of these so called “untouchable to recession proof real estate areas” are North County Coastal and Coastal Central San Diego. Some of these areas are; Carlsbad, Encinitas, Oceanside, Solana Beach, Ocean Beach, Point Loma, and more. These areas have taken some of the biggest hits of all and in my opinion will continue to see slashed prices through 2009. These costal real estate areas should see bigger drops than the areas of Newer Chula Vista which has already taken its biggest drop early on.

The false sense of values in these coastal areas has allowed inventory to build and short sales and foreclosures to start their run up. These areas are and will be a buyer’s delight in 2009. I still think the newer areas of Chula Vista are closer to their bottom than many of the other areas in San Diego County. This means if you’re buying a home in these areas it could very well drop in value less than other areas of San Diego County. From January 2008 to January 2009 this was exactly what happened and is a good trend going into 2009 for home buyers.

Now the reality of some of the statistics in this San Diego Real Estate Median Home Price Chart is that the number of sales in some of the communities is so low that they are not that accurate. What is accurate is the overall median home prices by areas like; North County Coastal, East County, and South Bay San Diego. These are a culmination of the total sales in the areas and have a large enough number of closed sales to be accurate.

The chart tells me there has been a lower reduction in median home prices in South Bay San Diego OVER ALL OTHER AREAS of San Diego County. The bleeding is less in this area and some good signs of recovery and less hemorrhaging than other San Diego communities. Buyers and investors both are seeing the value in many South Bay San Diego Communities.

Checkout the San Diego Median Home Price Chart and make your own conclusions.

http://www.dqnews.com/Charts/Monthly-Charts/SDUT-Charts/ZIPSDUT.aspx

If  you need help buying a home or condo in the San Diego area make sure you contact us we’re your San Diego Realtor.

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Blue Whale in San Diego found floating dead. A 35 foot long blue whale was found floating dead off of the San Diego Coast in La Jolla. The blue whale carcass was netted and taken to Fiesta Island which is well known for the annual Over the Line Tournament. Fiesta Island is next to Sea World San Diego and is a local favorite place for jet skiing, swimming and fires on the beach. The smell from the carcass was said to be a potential nuisance to the La Jolla residences noses.

The whale was analyzed by whale experts and dismantled and taken to the Miramar Landfill. The cause of death is still unknown. I have seen many whales off the San Diego Coast but never a blue whale. Hopefully the one I see will be alive.

The blue whale is the largest mammal and most likely the largest animal to ever live on the planet. Blue whales have a length of 75 to 100 feet with the longest one on record being 108 feet.

San Diego Foreclosure Search Tool

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