Marin Homes Sales February Newsletter
As we approach Valentine’s Day I wanted to let you know that we’re getting a little love in the world of real estate. What I’m experiencing and from speaking with other Realtors the consensus is that home buyers have returned and have been out in greater numbers in recent weeks. The bottoming of the housing market and low interest rates has influenced consumer confidence and rather than just being curious buyers are going to open houses, doing their online research and getting “pre-approved” by lending institutions.
On the lending front, the access to capital is still extremely tough, without stellar credit (usually a FICA score of 750 or above) and consistent income (a salaried employ with W2 income) most banks aren’t willing to take a chance. It’s gone to the extreme where well qualified self-employed people who could pay all cash if they wanted to are being denied loans. According to Senior Loan Consultant David Barton of All California Mortgage “In the 26 years I have been in this business I have never experienced such difficulties…we can expect a continuous tightening with the process of obtaining a mortgage during this new current year. Such detailed changes will not just require additional time but more so your patience”.
If you can get over the financing hurdle then you’re in good shape. Current home inventories are low but I’ve noticed the cherry blossoms coming out on my street heralding the approach of the spring selling season and we should soon see an influx of properties coming on the market. Along with the regular inventory there will also be what’s known as shadow inventory meaning distressed properties that include short sales, foreclosures and bank owned properties. That should give buyers plenty to choose from and bargains to be had.
Marin County Homes Inventory
If you’re selling your property you should have plenty of people looking but be prepared; buyers are expecting a “deal” these days so pricing is more important than ever. Patience will be a virtue as well as the average amount of time it takes to sell a home is as follows;
Corte Madera 189 Days
Larkspur 264 Days
Mill Valley 187 Days
San Anselmo 245 Days
San Rafael 184 Days
Sausalito 237 Days
Tiburon 225 Days
(Other cities available upon request)
My February newsletter contains articles on using FHA funds to purchase foreclosures and when to lock in on a loan rate.
To read the articles click on Victor Fisher’s Newsletter
No commentsSausalito hotel Casa Madrona sold in foreclosure sale
Sausalito’s landmark Casa Madrona Hotel & Spa was sold on the steps of San Rafael City Hall for $11.4 million Tuesday morning as part of a foreclosure sale.
James P. Knell, chairman of SIMA Management Corp. of Santa Barbara, offered the sole bid for the hotel at the auction, attended by about 30 people.
A SIMA representative could not be reached for comment. The company owns one other hotel, Hotel Oceana in Santa Barbara, and several apartment complexes, business plazas and shopping centers, mostly in Southern California.
The minimum bid set by the FDIC was $11.4 million, and Knell submitted a bid $1 above that.
The historic site was taken over in 2008 by the FDIC when owners defaulted on their loan, causing Georgia-based Integrity Bank to fail and putting the foreclosure in motion. The unpaid loan balance was more than $24 million.
The FDIC had an asset management firm settle unpaid hotel taxes with Sausalito.
The hotel supplies about 40 percent of the city’s total hotel tax.
Personally i hope that the restaurant Poggio remains unaffected by the sale, it’s become one of the best restaurants in Sausalito.
Read the entire story from the Marin IJ
No commentsCoastal California Real Estate Is on the Mend
The economy in the coastal areas of California is recovering with new home prices rising, but things remains stagnant in the central parts of the state.
The median home price in the nine-county San Francisco Bay area increased 15.2 percent in December compared to a year ago, reaching $380,000, according to MDA DataQuick. In Southern California, the median home price increased 7.5 percent to $360,000.
Median home prices in the eight-county Central Valley fell 11 percent to $142,000 during the same time period, DataQuick says.
In the Inland Empire counties of San Bernardino and Riverside, the median home price in December was $180,000, down 10 percent from a year ago.
Economists say the improvement in coastal California was driven by jobs and the increasing availability of venture capital. California is often considered a bellwether of trends in other areas of the country.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Cari Tuna (02/02/2010)
No commentsShopping in Marin County
I live in Sausalito, which is just a stone’s throw from the Golden Gate Bridge and all the amenities that San Francisco has to offer. So why is it that when it comes to shopping we always wind up staying in Marin County even when it means adding a few more miles onto the car? The answer I decided is convenience, I’m not concerned with the $6 bridge toll but the parking issues in San Francisco are a nightmare and I only have a license plate on the rear of my car not on the front. Why ?I just like the way the car looks; doesn’t seem to matter in Marin but when I park in the city the meter maids love to leave a $100 ticket under the wiper blade. I love the quaint shops along Chestnut and Union Street but there’s a similar vibe in Marin. Walk the downtown streets of Mill Valley and the same kind of boutique stores can be found. Galleries? Known as a tourist destination; Sausalito has a multitude of galleries along Bridgeway Street or pretend you’re a local and escape the crowds to Caledonia Street where you shop for chic designs at Green Apples and when you’re just too tired to shop anymore cross the street and dine at Michelin and Zagat top rated restaurant Sushi Ran. Want more convenience? Then head to any number of malls where the parking is easy and the crowds, not so bad. Heading north from Sausalito to Mill Valley you’ve got the outdoor style Strawberry Village with the Spanish tile roof, coffee shops and Woodys’ Yogurt Place, a favorite with the after school crowd.
If you’re a mall rat then Corte Madera must be Mecca as either side of Highway 101 has a mall. We call them the left side and the right side malls but their known as the Town Center (left side)that’s modeled after an Italian town and has a weekly farmer’s market.
Then there’s the Village at Corte Madera (right side) that hosts such high-end retail shops like Nordstroms and the Apple store.
Continuing north there is the Bon Air Center in Greenbrae which is more of a neighborhood shopping center and the newly re-designed shopping destination at Northgate in San Rafael where you can eat, take in a movie , or chillax at the outdoor plaza featuring an old-growth oak tree.
Want to “bulk up” ?; head up to Vintage Oaks in Novato and hit Costco, where you can get just about anything in a mega pack. They even have caskets starting at $924.99 but you’d have to ask about a volume discount.
So if considering a move or relocating to Marin County you’ll still want to hit San Francisco for all the fine dining museums and events but there’s plenty of culture, outdoor activities and “retail therapy” available right here in the Marin.
No commentsNotices of default and Foreclosures down in Marin and across California
The number of notices of default – the first signs of foreclosure – dropped in Marin County and California the final months of 2009 compared with the previous quarter, but it’s unclear whether the trend indicates improving conditions in entry-level markets or a shift in foreclosure policies among lenders, according to real estate tracking firm MDA DataQuick.
305 notices of default were recorded in Marin during Q4 period, down from 428 Q3 of 2009. But compared year to year, default filings in the fourth quarter of 2009 were up 57 percent from the same period in 2008.
Actual foreclosures jumped from 87 in the fourth quarter of 2008 to 123 in the fourth quarter of 2009.
Statewide, 84,568 notices were filed in Q4 of 2009, down from 111,689 for the prior quarter, and up 12.4 percent from 75,230 in Q4 2008, according to San Diego-based .
Homeowners were least likely to default in Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties and most likely to receive a notice from their lender in Merced, Stanislaus and Riverside counties, DataQuick analysts said.
The lenders that originated the most loans that went into default in California last quarter were Countrywide, 5,588; Wells Fargo, 3,482 and Washington Mutual, 3,460. Along with Bank of America, 1,760 and World Savings, 1,869, they were also the most active lenders in the second half of 2006, according to DataQuick.
Read the entire story from the Marin IJ
California Housing Inventory at 5-Year Low
The inventory of California homes shrunk to a 5-year low in December, dropping to 50 days from 243 a year ago, according to estimates by the California Association of REALTORS®.
Because California’s housing market is the largest in the country, economists watch it closely as a predictor of where the rest of the country is going.
Continuing recovery will depend on the state’s ability to overcome its 12.4 unemployment rate.
“I’m convinced that once the general public believes prices have bottomed out and are coming up, more people will put their homes on the market,” says Andrew LePage, an analyst at MDA DataQuick, a provider of housing data. “And that will probably coincide with the economy and job market improving.”
Meanwhile practitioners are finding the market frustrating.
“Right now, we need more listings,” says Lianne Pinkston, a Coldwell Banker associate in Morgan Hill, Calif., south of San Jose. “I have an all-cash investor, and they’ve wanted to buy a duplex or four-plex, and they’ve been making all-cash offers for over the asking price, and they’re still not getting anything.”
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jim Carlton (01/23/2010)
No commentsHousing Market Is Near Bottom according to Freddie Mac CEO
The inventory of foreclosed houses still hampers the recovery of the housing sector, but overall, the U.S. housing market appears to be at or near bottom, Freddie Mac CEO Charles Haldeman told the Detroit Economic Club on Tuesday.
He predicted that the 30-year fixed mortgage rate would remain between 5 percent and 6 percent through 2010.
“The big downside risk to all this is a large wave of homes now in foreclosure potentially hitting the market at prices that are destructive,” Haldeman said.
Source: Reuters News, Soyoung Kim (01/26/2010)
No commentsMost Undervalued Housing Markets – Top 10
Nationwide, only 87 markets are in the overvalued category, according to a newly released 2010 report compiled by IHS Global Insight and PNC Financial Services.
That means 242 of the 299 largest U.S. housing markets are selling for prices that even bankers think are less than fair market value. The judgment is based on a comparison of median home prices, local interest rates, population densities and income, plus historic premiums or discounts.
Here are the 10 most undervalued areas, according to the study:
* Las Vegas, -41.4 percent
* Vero Beach, Fla., -39.8 percent
* Merced, Calif., -37.7 percent
* Cape Coral, Fla., -36.8 percent
* Houma, La., -34.6 percent
* Port St. Lucie, Fla., -33.3 percent
* Warren, Mich., -32.3 percent
* Vallejo, Calif., -31.9 percent
* Modesto, Calif. -31.8 percent
* Stockton, Calif., -31.8 percent
Source: CNNMoney, Les Christie (01/27/2010)
No commentsMarin High School Poetry Out Loud competition in Mill Valley
The Marin Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts California Poets in the Schools and the Poetry Foundation present “Poetry Out Loud.”
Local high school students compete in this regional competition as part of the national ” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”" onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”,” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”www.poetryoutloud.org” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”)”Poetry Out Loud” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”" onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”,” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”www.poetryoutloud.org” onclick=”javascript:TrackClick(”,’www.poetryoutloud.org’)”)” program from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010 at 142 Throckmorton Theatre in Mill Valley. The free event is open to the public.
The winner advances to the state finals in Sacramento.
Student finalists have the opportunity to win hundreds of dollars on the state competition level and thousands of dollars at the National finals of Poetry Out Loud – a competition run by the California Arts Council in the state and started by the National Endowment for the Arts to engage high school students in the presentation of poetry through memorization and performance.
Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is administered in partnership with the State Arts Agencies of all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
For more information go to www.poetryoutloud.org
WHEN: 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010
142 Throckmorton Theatre,
142 Throckmorton Ave., Mill Valley.
415-383-9600
www.142throckmortontheatre.com
Annual McGuire Real Estate Sales Meeting
The Olympic Golf Course as seen from the clubhouse
