Quick Home Search!
Welcome To SREV
Housing Inventory Continues Decline
Pending Sales Are Through The Roof!!
The total number of homes for sale in both Sacramento and Placer counties has been declining steadily since October. After 10 consecutive months of increases in 2010, it looks like we’re on our way to normal inventory levels and without government intervention, we could be headed for a “normal” market.
What the hell that means I have no idea.
I’ve been in this industry almost 10 years and still don’t know what a “normal” market looks like. Now that I take a moment and think about it, maybe what I’ve seen in almost 10 years IS a normal market!
There’s a scary thought!!
Sacramento County
The increase in sales I’ve been expecting for the last month or so is finally showing up with almost a 34% increase in sales from February to March. As you can see, pending sales are continuing to increase as well with a “scant” 91.7% increase since October and a 41.3% increase from February to March.
That doesn’t leave many months of inventory left when you consider the pended sales. Just 1.8 months of inventory left if nothing else were to come on the market and only 3 months left based on the sold homes.
That is such an incredible turn around in very short period of time.
You know what this means don’t you? Now that the inventory is declining and sales are increasing, the basic fundamentals of Economy 101, supply and demand take over. That means, based on what the data shows, we could begin to see an increase in prices in the short term.
I’m not one to say… ”HEY!! Prices are going to go up!! Buy now or you’ll LOSE OUT!!” But based on the data, what do you think?? An anomaly? Market going to crash or double dip??
If I’ve learned anything in 10 years is that my crystal ball is always a little bit cloudy on predictions.
Most economist see, according to Forbes magazine, that we’ll lose approximately 2% value region wide this year. This will be an interesting year to say the least.
Placer County
The numbers in Placer County are more dramatic than Sacramento county but it’s the same story, sales and pending sales are way up while inventory levels continue to decline.
Pending sales increased over 92% in the last 6 months and almost 50% over February. Homes for sale has decreased 24% over the last 6 months. There is approximately 2.9 months of homes for sale in Placer county.
While it could be said that some of this is seasonal, we don’t often see results like this in the market. These are quite dramatic changes and sooner or later, prices will have to respond to this or so you’d think.
While a quick check today revealed a leveling off to a slight decline of prices in both counties, I wouldn’t expect that to last if the current trends continue.
Looking to buy a home and avoid paying more tomorrow than you could be paying today? 
If so, I’d love to help you. Please phone, text, email or just fill out the form below and I’ll get right back to you.
Thanks for visiting!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
A Dinner At Skipolini’s
Pizza, Pasta and Ice Cream!
Last night my in-laws invited us to join them at the new restaurant near the new theatre off of Blue Oaks in Rocklin called Skipolini’s.
Initially when I walked in this place a few weeks back, I was a little turned off. I tend to shy away from not strictly pizza type 
restaurants. I also like more local pizza like Cool River and Celestino’s.
I was pleasantly surprised at how good the food was at Skipolini’s.
We had pizza and didn’t try anything else but I will say that the pizza was quite good.
Also, the service was good as well. Jesse waited on us and was very polite and patient. We didn’t wait long for anything and he was very prompt.
The interior setup is pretty much the same as when it was Johnny Carino’s with exception to the left dining area as you walk in. That used to be seating but is now dessert central.
They have gelato and frozen yogurt as well as other after dinner sweets.
They also have a nice selection of beers. Not a huge selection but what they have compliments the food they serve.
By the time we left, it was pretty filled up for a Wednesday night.
I think the theatre being there really helps the traffic there and in the area. Johnny Carino’s failed in the same location a year or so ago before the theatre opened for business.
For my son Ryan, who ordered a kid’s pizza, they brought out all the ingredients for him to make his own pizza at the table which we thought was cool. The picture above shows you what he thought of it! Very happy boy!
We go to the theatre every so often, it’s right down the street from where we live in Rocklin, and making a night of it and stopping for dinner at Skipolini’s is a pretty good call I think.
We enjoyed ourselves, the food was good, the service was prompt and the restaurant was clean and fun. We’ll go back.
Thanks for visiting!
A Case AGAINST Principal Loan Amount Reductions
Complete Financial Collapse Possible
I just read an article from HousingWire.com that makes a common sense case for not adjusting principal loan amounts for underwater mortgages as a matter of policy/law.
If you think about the ramifications beyond struggling homeowners, you can see that it would be possible to put a lot of banks and people out of work with losses in the trillions of dollars.
There is an investigation going on right now concerning the foreclosure debacle that occurred in the 4th quarter of last year. As a result of this investigation, there is pressure against mortgage servicers to work out a modification to include but not limited to a principal loan amount reduction on very specific time frames.
Before any mortgage servicer could start the foreclosure process, they would have to work something out with homeowners by modifying the terms of their mortgage by either modification or principal loan amount reduction.
If you’ve been following my blog, you know that my feeling is that principal loan amount reductions is the ONLY answer to avoiding foreclosures and keeping people in their homes.
Period, end of story.
Massive Strategic Defaults
Imagine if that were the case. If every mortgage servicer nationwide were REQUIRED to modify or reduce the principal loan amount of every struggling homeowner or underwater mortgage? How many more “struggling” homeowners would surface? Anyone with half a brain would default on their mortgage in hopes of getting a reduction in the amount they owe on their home. “Let’s get a discount!”
It could get very ugly.
Some of the Attorneys General fear that it would create a wave of “strategic defaults” if the policies were too consumer friendly. A strategic default is a situation where the homeowner just walks away from their mortgage as it isn’t convenient for them to keep an underwater mortgage yet they can afford to pay the mortgage amount.
I think that it isn’t a bad idea for the homeowner to walk away. Corporations make this decision all the time. This is common in business and has been since the begin of the downturn.
My stance:
I could CARE LESS if every mortgage servicer in the country suffered massive losses, if every Wall Street investor who has profited from this economic housing downturn losses their shirts and CRASHES AND BURNS! (Ahem!)
They are the reason this country’s economy and the housing downturn is in the shape that it’s in. Yet not one of them is serving prison time for driving the country into this mess. In fact, our government hired as the treasury secretary a Wall Street insider.
Isn’t it nice to have low friends in high places. (And yes I voted for his boss. That will happen only once in my lifetime!)
I could go on a SERIOUS Dennis Miller style rant here but while I feel that way, that wouldn’t the best thing that could happen. (I HATE it when my common sense prevails!)
If the requirements were TOO consumer friendly, we could have massive defaults that would further drive the economy of this country into decline or at a minimum stall the recovery that is already underway.
There will be too many strategic defaults as it is and honestly, the servicers and investors deserve every one of them.
California Has A VERY Consumer Friendly Law In Effect
California has passed a law as of January 1st that provides a homeowner no liability for a first mortgage whether it’s a purchase money loan or refinanced loan in default. While it doesn’t cover second mortgages, and I think it’s right that it doesn’t, it provides an out for those who have refinanced their home and now need to let their homes go.
You could walk away from an underwater 1st mortgage on your home without ramification, ie. deficiency judgment, against you. Again, this won’t cover second mortgages or helocs but settlements can be worked out with them easily enough. (or not)
The bottom line is that while I detest the fact that our government, economy and society is controlled by Wall Street interests and corporations, having them all collapse within a short period of time would be catastrophic to the middle class and the people of this country as a whole.
It does sound tasty though. All the mortgage servicers getting theirs?? A part of me would LOVE to see that!! It must be my evil twin!
Thanks for indulging my anarchist side!
Thanks for visiting!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
Roseville Home Sales Report – 95747
Amid High Pending Sales, Average Sold Price Drops
Pending sales are at year over year highs right now yet most of the specific zip codes I report on are still losing a little value. Rocklin 95765 hasn’t lost value in February but that’s the anomaly in our market right now.
Pending Sales Up 50% In Six Months
The pending sale numbers going up is such a good sign for our region. All over the Sacramento and Placer county areas, pending sales are off the charts. (figuratively of course!) This has to result in higher sales and lower inventory levels if all things stay reasonably constant. This rarely happens but we can hope!
A 50% increase in pending sales over the last 6 months and a 25% decrease in sales doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense but my feeling is that the sold numbers will increase in March. Seems like they must.
Average Sales Price DECLINES
The average sales price in this zip code declined almost 2% over the last 6 months. That is what I would consider reasonably flat in terms of value losses over this period of time. 6 months is time enough to establish a trend in pricing and 2% over that amount of time, while not a gain obviously, is minimal.
Days On The Market – How Long Is It Taking To Sell?
The distress market is a large part of what selling right now. This includes bank owned foreclosure sales and short sales.
Bank owned foreclosures are similar to a regular sale as far as how long it takes to get the home closed. Short sales can be closed in 30 days or it could take 6 months depending on the bank you’re dealing with.
Short sales drives the overall average days on market up.
The average days on market here takes into account all status’: Regular sellers, bank owned foreclosure sales and short sales.
Over the last 6 months the days on market has actually come down but the last 2 months have been higher than the previous 4 months. Honestly, I have no idea why this is the case. I suspect that the trend of how long it takes to sell a home will come down to stabilize at around 85 days but that’s is just a guess on my part.
Banks have become infinitely easier to work with in the short sale process getting approvals out much faster than they have in previous years once the property is listed and offers have been delivered for bank approval.
We At The Mercy, Or Not, Of Big Banks
I saw a report that there are 5.3 million homeowners across the country that are in “limbo” with their lenders between foreclosure and the sales market.
Working their way through that many homes could take over 4 years. 4 more years of this. California is number two on the list with 228,000 homeowners in limbo.
How many will be added to that number over the next year? When will the banks get on board and cycle these homes through they system from foreclosure to sale more rapidly?
Our entire economy is dependent on your bank, your lender, and when they decide to cooperate with the market. They are in control. I don’t like it that much.
Need a Realtor to help you purchase your next home? It costs you nothing to work with a Realtor and I might even save you a few bucks in the process. No pressure or sales hype, just hard work for you.
To contact me, just fill out the form below and I’ll get right back to you…stay close to your phone or email as I usually respond within a few minutes.
Thanks for visiting!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
Pending Sales Continue To Climb
Sacramento and Placer Counties Pending Sales Go Up
Pending sales across the region have gone up dramatically since the beginning of the year. February was no exception with pending sales going up over 15% in Placer County and over 34% in Sacramento county in 1 month.
Here are the graphs from Metrolist Inc’s TrendVision. Many thanks!!
Placer County
This is a pretty incredible shift in buying activity from the low point of 2010 in December to February 2011. Roughly double the pending sales in two months. With this kind of activity, if we continue to see the homes available for sale decline, it won’t be long until values begin to stabilize.
Even if it’s a temporary or slows the value losses, it’s a very good thing for our region. It’s activity that can be built upon.
The interesting thing to notice about both of these graphs is that the pending sale levels are much higher now than when the First Time Home Buyer Credit was being offered by the government. Right now, there are no government incentives driving sales. What’s causing such an increase?
The Sacramento and Placer county real estate markets are undervalued! There a many, many great buys out there right now!
If this were not the case, pending sale numbers wouldn’t be this strong.
Sacramento County
Sacramento county is much more diverse than South Placer county. There are a lot of very good values in the south Sacramento area and they are getting more numerous. New properties are coming on the market all the time that are quality investment grade properties that will cash flow with the minimum down payment.
It’s a great time to invest in real estate especially now that it looks like the worst of the value losses is behind us. Clearly, with the pending sale numbers being as high as they are, the market agrees.
Are you looking for the best value in real estate in the Sacramento region? Whether you’re investing in cash flowing homes or looking for a primary residence, we can help you get there.
Please fill out the form below and we’ll get back to your promptly.
Thanks for visiting!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
Crisis In Japan Good For Homebuyers In Sacramento!
Investors Run For The Safety Of The Bond Market
While the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear tragedy in Japan is dreadful to say the least, the result has been that investors have gone to the safety of the bond market to protect against value losses in the stock market.
When this happens, it lowers bond yields, interest rates and mortgage interest rates go down as a result.
This is exactly what is happening right now according to FreddieMac.com.
Interest Rates Fall Lower
The average interest rate for a 30 year fixed mortgage fell to 4.72% this week. This makes purchasing a home even more affordable than last week.
That said with the competition for homes heating up in the Rocklin and Roseville real estate markets, the lower interest rates could not matter much if buyers don’t get off the dime and purchase sooner than later.
The longer you wait, the more it will cost!
Looking for an agent to help you buy or sell a home? Please give us a call or simply fill out the form below and I’ll get back to you promptly.
Thanks for visiting!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
Worst MLS Photo of The Moment
So Is It Just Half A House For Sale??
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…real estate agents are a different breed. You know, whoever took this pic felt like they weren’t getting paid enough! Or if they were they felt their income should be doubled..
“If you’re going to pay me half of what I’m worth then you’ll get half a photo!”
Do they even sell regular film camera’s anymore? Aren’t all camera’s digital pretty much? I mean you had to be able to preview this before you drove away from the house, right? Oh well…the MLS is littered with photos like this.
It’s the market. When you’ve got a seller who’s a lender, they don’t check up on things like they should and you get half assed attempts at professionalism. I’ve learned to accept it.
Are you looking for an agent to sell your home who I GUARANTEE will take better photos of your home than this? If so, please fill out the form below and I’ll get right back to you. I’ve even got a video camera and can dominate the search engines for your address. Fancy huh? LOL
Thanks for visiting!!
cforms contact form by delicious:days
‘Thank you to Metrolist Services Inc.
Follow me on:
SREVS Weekly Blog Digest
Client Testimonials
Categories
- Real Estate Market Commentary
- Home Sales Reports
- First Time Home Buyer Info
- Rocklin & Roseville Open Houses
- Rocklin & Roseville New Homes
- Foreclosure Statistics
- Mortgage Information
- Short Sale Information
- Worst MLS Photos of the Moment
- Community Events
- Your Questions Answered!
- My Favorite….
- A Boy and His Dad
Resources Links
- Tim Clegg, Bank REO Cleanup
- College Funding Advisor, Michael Mathews
- CalHFA First Time Home Buyers Program
- City of Rocklin
- City of Roseville
- City of Lincoln
- City of Citrus Heights
- Great Schools.com
- Sacramento PD CrimeMap
- CrimeMapper – Any Address
Archives
Mortgage Calculator
 | ||||
 | ||||
Let’s Network on Facebook!
