Real Estate in San Diego's Central Coast

Does It Pay To Remodel?

mindygf — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:49:25 +0000

Check out the new numbers from CNN on the return on investment from remodeling. Not all real estate investors in the market would agree with these numbers! You’ll see it’s based on survey results. For the full story click here

7725 Herschel LJ

mindygf — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 03:23:50 +0000

402 Coast Bl LJ-Pocket Listing

mindygf — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 03:10:43 +0000

The First-Time Homebuyer And Current Home Owner Tax Credit Tax Credit

mindygf — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:57:25 +0000

The $8,000 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit is Extended

Now, qualified first-time home buyers would receive their $8000 tax credit if they sign a purchase contract by April 30, 2010 and close by June 30, 2010.
The home purchased must be their primary residence
Buyer cannot have owned a home during the past three years
Tax credit is up to 10% of the home value (not to exceed $8,000)
Annual income caps to qualify for the tax credit have increased ($125K for single filers / $225K for joint filers). Partial tax credit can be granted for incomes up to $145K for single filers / $245 for joint filers.

PLUS New $6,500 Tax Credit for Current Home Owners Purchasing a Primary Residence

Eligible home buyers must have lived in their current home for 5 consecutive years of the past 8 years.
The new home does not have to cost more than the old home.
Eligible for homes with purchase agreements signed between November 6, 2009 and April 30, 2010, and close by June 30, 2010
Annual income caps to qualify for the full tax credit ($125K for single filers / $225K for joint filers). Partial tax credit can be granted for incomes up to $145K for single filers / $245 for joint filers.

Latest Real Estate Buzz

mindygf — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 21:53:35 +0000

$8000 First Time Home Buyer Credit is going away! Know anyone who can use $8,000? Time is running out for first time home buyers to collect the cash! The $8000 Tax Credit Clock Is Ticking! To qualify the escrows must close by November 30th, 2009. Should you know anyone who could benefit, please let me know and I’d be delighted to help them take advantage of this opportunity.

Have you seen Zillow lately? It has some new useful bells and whistles. By clicking on “Local Info” you can do a data dive on any neighborhood you are following. Yes…Zillow is Digging Out Data in Neighborhoods! It now has tons of continuously updated data on most neighborhoods in the U.S. Now you can:

Find Data in Your Neighborhood

Mindy’s Mid Year Update – San Diego Real Estate

mindygf — Sat, 30 May 2009 21:15:23 +0000

Real Estate Fast Facts

Consumer confidence climbs to eight-month high-The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index™, which had increased considerably in April, posted another large gain in May. The Index now stands at 54.9, up from 40.8 in April.
Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index which measures the percentage of households that can afford to purchase an entry-level home in California is up. Q1 2009: 69 percent vs. Q1 2008: 46 (Source: CA Association of Realtors)
Mortgage rates–Inched up at the end of May. As we continue to sell our U.S. debt and demand for it continues to fall…the result is projected to be rising interest rates.
Foreclosure facts-In a recent study, RealtyTrac compared its database of bank-repossessed homes to MLS listings of for-sale homes in four states, including California. It found a significant disparity – only 30% of the foreclosures were listed for sale in the MLS and the remainder is known in the industry as “shadow inventory.” Lenders are sitting on hundreds of thousands of foreclosed homes that have not hit the market, according to numerous data sources.

San Diego Metro Area Home Value Performance
Home Type	Current Zillow Home Value Index	Year Over Year Change	5-Year Annualized Change*
All Homes	$352,938	-18.0%	-5.5%
Single Family	$379,493	-18.5%	-5.4%
Condo/Coop	$265,065	-15.7%	-6.5%
Bottom Tier	$234,165	-25.0%	-7.8%
Middle Tier	$349,075	-18.7%	-5.6%
Top Tier	$606,416	-11.8%	-3.3%
(Source: Zillow)

Benefit right now from a perfect storm of low mortgage rates, bargain prices, strong inventory and a high affordability index. Opportunity knocks!

Contact me if you or if you know anyone who can benefit.

*5-Yr Change=The annualized % change for the Zillow Home Value Index over the past 5 years

Need a Shot of Good News?

mindygf — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 04:01:10 +0000

The San Diego Union Tribune front page reported today when comparing year over year data 6 San Diego zip codes did not decline in value from 2007 to 2008.This includes single family homes, condos, and new home sales. They did not say which zips so I did a little research and the 6 winning zips are actually 7 zips and they are: Coronado, Downtown, Ocean Beach, Sorrento Valley, University City, Rancho Sante Fe and Warner Springs.

The median price for the San Diego market as a whole is down 30%… the La Jolla market fared better with the median price down 19% from 2007 to 2008. If you want to find out how other San Diego zip codes fared click on the attached link:

http://www.dqnews.com/Articles/2008/Charts/Annual-Charts/SDUT-Charts/ZIPSDUT08.aspx

Curious about how San Diego fared against other CA counties and SoCal as a whole?

	Sales Volume			Median Price
All homes	Dec-07	Dec-08	% Chng	Dec-07	Dec-08	%Chng
Los Angeles	4,430	5,848	32.0%	$470,000	$320,000	-31.90%
Orange	1,731	2,580	49.0%	$565,000	$397,000	-29.70%
Riverside	2,503	4,435	77.2%	$355,000	$209,000	-41.10%
San Bernardino	1,518	2,862	88.5%	$315,000	$180,000	-42.90%
San Diego	2,468	3,325	34.7%	$430,000	$300,000	-30.20%
Ventura	590	876	48.5%	$525,250	$338,000	-35.60%
SoCal	13,240	19,926	50.5%	$425,000	$278,000	-34.60%

Interest rates are still low…the stimulus bill delivered a homebuyer $8000 tax credit that does not have to be repaid and a multi-trillion dollar financial stability plan which includes $50 billion in foreclosure prevention programs. The first time home buyer affordability index rose to 53% during the third quarter of 2008.

Now there is some good news to rally around! Should you know anyone who wants to leverage these opportunities…I’d be delighted to assist them!

Cheers to hopefully more upbeat news on the horizon!

The Wild West of Real Estate – Continues to Create Major Buying Opportunities

mindygf — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:22:56 +0000

Well the Chinese curse… “may we live in interesting times” …continues to ring true!

Given the historic financial crisis and the consequent bail out…we expect once the “dust settles” there will be many opportunities in the San Diego marketplace…

Ø According to a recent article in the SD Union Tribune, San Diego has the 5^th weakest housing market in the nation… posting a decline of 25 % (over 1 year)

Ø Right now we are seeing major price reductions. Homes in the $1,500,000 price point…. it’s not uncommon to see prices being slashed by $100,000 to $300,000. One house in La Jolla Shores was just reduced by $8 million from roughly $26 million!

Ø According to REBA, the local La Jolla brokers’ association comparing average home prices the month of Sept 07 to Sept 08, prices have dropped 31% for detached homes, dropping from $2,749,000 to $1,904,200.

Ø Interest rates are low….inventories are high…and there are a lot of motivated sellers out there…..you just might want to get to know!

If you are interested in leveraging this difficult time in marketplace and turn it into an opportunity to secure a great steal….please contact me!

Financial Market Pressures = LJ Oportunity

mindygf — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 20:19:47 +0000

The Chinese curse…may we live in interesting times…boy we got them now!

…and yes if no one believed it was a buyers mkt ..they are believers now!
Here’s what I’m seeing:

Though LJ has been somewhat of a protected enclave it is not immune from market pressures
In LJ, sales are down, inventories are high.
An article in the Sunday Union-Tribune (Sept 14, 2008) speaks to La Jolla:13.3%-30% homes sold at a loss from the previous time they were sold.
The bail out of Freddie and Fannie will provide a positive boost and it has lowered interest rates for conforming and jumbo conforming loans – the lowest since 2005!
The market is still be highly unstable spelling more buying opportunities.
With Lehman Bros going bankrupt, the cascading effect of the financial markets will mean fewer buyers…higher supply.
Now more than ever the adage is true…”buy when there is blood in the streets!”

So you are we right we are seeing significant price reductions especially as we begin to launch into the cooling off season. We are seeing homes like Sugarman -reduced its price then it flew off the shelf. Sea Ridge -price reduction -multiple offers (was at 1.4-1.6). So I can help you scout out some great deals. Start with a slightly higher price point and then wait for the reductions. Have an updated pre-approval letter in hand and be ready to pounce as soon as we see the reduction. Homes like 438 Retaheim or 5617 Bellevue might be examples of ones to watch. Two of my buyers are doing just that, waiting for price reductions then writing offers. Catching that holiday dip in prices just before sellers take them of the market for the holidays. …and then they’ll be moving in January.

That’s the latest from the RE beat!

mindygf — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:46:38 +0000

Mr Mortgage…May CA Home Sales Report -Conditions Worsening

Look for more REO’s to hit the market but San Diego coastal is still immune. Check out this blog

http://www.bubbleinfo.com/journal/2008/6/20/sd-foreclosures-by-zip.html