San Diego Real Estate Blog

The IRS put out a statment today telling tax payers not to apply for the $8,000.00 tax credit if they do not qualify. The first time home buyers tax has been credited with the increase in home sales in 2009. However it has also been an irresistible tool for dishonest tax payers seeking to make a quick buck. The IRS has already started 24 criminal investigations looking into suspected fraud cases. So bottom line your freedom is worth more than $8,000. Please contact me if you are not sure whether you qualify or not.

Leonardo Gonzalez

http://www.ChulaVistaCommunities.com

Save eight to 18 gallons of water per minute by using a broom to clean sidewalks, patios, and driveways.For more green real-estate-related tips and discussion, visit C.A.R.’s green blog (http://blogs.car.org/)

Lets save the earth one blog at a time!

Leonardo Gonzalez

http://www.ChulaVistaCommunities.com

Consumers' appraisal of the job market was more favorable this month, with those saying jobs are "hard to get" decreasing to 45.1 percent from 48.5 percent, and those claiming jobs are "plentiful" increasing to 4.2 percent from 3.7 percent. Consumers' short-term outlook was much improved from last month, and the labor market outlook also was more upbeat, according to the report.

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled 553,910 in July at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate. Statewide home resale activity increased 12 percent from the revised 494,390 sales pace recorded in July 2008. Sales in July 2009 increased 8.1 percent compared with the previous month. The statewide sales figure represents what the total number of homes sold during 2009 would be if sales maintained the July pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.

The median price of an existing, single-family detached home in California during July 2009 was $285,480, a 19.6 percent decrease from the revised $355,000 median for July 2008, C.A.R. reported. The July 2009 median price rose 3.9 percent compared with June’s $274,740 median price.

“July marked the fifth consecutive month of month-to-month increases in the median price,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “This was the largest increase on record for the month of July based on statistics dating back to 1979. The yearly decline in July also was the smallest in the past 19 months.”

Calif. median home price - June 09: $274,740 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. highest median home price by C.A.R. region June 09: Santa Barbara So. Coast $850,000 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. lowest median home price by C.A.R. region June 09: High Desert $108,600 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index - Second Quarter 2009: 67 percent (Source: C.A.R.)
Mortgage rates - week ending 8/13/09 30-yr. fixed: 5.29% Fees/points: 0.7% 15-yr. fixed: 4.68% Fees/points: 0.7% 1-yr. adjustable: 4.72% Fees/points: 0.4% (Source: Freddie Mac)

IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO BUY A HOME IN SAN DIEGO CONTACT ME FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR CURRENT MARKET.

LEO GONZALEZ

WWW.CHULAVISTACOMMUNITIES.COM

Hello Everyone,

This article came out today. Some of you may know what is going on but most of you are on the fence. Read the article and call me with questions regarding buying a home. The window is closing and you need to jump throught it now.

Leo Gonzalez

http://www.ChulaVistaCommunities.com

Buyers in many areas are finding that real-estate owned (REO) properties—homes that have been repossessed by lenders and put back on the market—often are selling in one day, sometimes faster.  According to the founder of Foreclosure.com, offers on REOs are coming in immediately after the listing comes on the market, and some homes have been put into contract in less than 90 minutes.

MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS

·    On average, inventories of California homes priced less than $300,000—the most-popular price point for foreclosure buyers—have shrunk from a nearly 10-month supply a year ago, to less than a three and a half-month supply in July, according to the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.)

·      Because inventory levels of homes priced in the lower end of the market are low, some buyers are finding that sellers are not willing to negotiate on the price.   In many instances, sellers expect the first offer to be the best and highest possible for the buyer.

·      Instead of holding onto REOs for the best prices—and paying the property taxes and maintenance and heating costs—many banks are selling the homes as quickly as possible, according to Foreclosure.com.  “In this market, if they can liquidate them fast, it makes more sense to get them off the books,” said the company’s founder.

·      Despite efforts by lenders and the government to prevent foreclosures, many economists and housing analysts predict there will be another wave of foreclosures by year’s end, and many of those properties will be offered for sale.  According to the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency, 53 percent of loans that were modified in the first half of 2008 fell back into arrears.

Sure, it’s convenient, but you can save 1.6 to 5 gallons of water when you don’t use your toilet as a wastebasket.

For more green real-estate-related tips and discussion, visit C.A.R.’s green blog (http://blogs.car.org/) and C.A.R.’s Green Web site http://green.car.org/.

FHA expects all servicers to implement the changes by August 15. The program permanently reduces a family's monthly mortgage payment through the use of a partial claim, which defers the repayment of mortgage principal through an interest-free subordinate mortgage that is not due until the first mortgage is paid off.

The program will allow HUD to bring the borrower's payment down to an affordable level. This will be accomplished by bringing the mortgage current, buying down the loan by up to 30 percent of the unpaid principal balance and deferring these amounts in a partial claim.

"We're bringing another important tool to the table to help struggling families who are desperate to keep their homes," said Donovan. "Tens of thousands of FHA borrowers will now be able to modify their mortgages in the same manner as so many others who are taking advantage of the administration’s Making Home Affordable program. This is just the latest tool we are providing to help homeowners prevent foreclosures through the Making Home Affordable program. Earlier this month we announced an expansion of the Home Affordable Refinance Program to borrowers who are up to 125 percent underwater. Together, these actions will significantly increase the help available to homeowners."