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Posts Tagged ‘Home Searches’

South Oregon real estate

December 8th, 2009

South Oregon real estate has seen the best and the worst of the housing market as changes to the area’s local dynamics have shifted over the last couple of years in response to the devastating global recession that has affected people around the world. Some good news for owners of real estate in South Oregon came on November 16, 2009, when Michael Rose, an author for the Statesman Journal, reported that lenders foreclosed fewer homes in October than previous months. The article claims that “About 190 homes in Salem and a portion of Marion County along the northeast edge of the city are either in default or owned by lenders, according RealtyTrac, a property and foreclosure listing firm.” While this comes as good news to many interested parties, Rose warns that most people are not out of the woods yet. In fact, “foreclosure activity nationwide has declined for the third month in a row, but high-risk mortgages, negative equity, and unemployment continue to put homeowners in peril.”

The Statesman Journal article also claims that current owners of South Oregon homes for sale are finding it harder to woo interested buyers and even harder to get a fair prince since “homeowners seeking to refinance sometimes learn that the appraised value of their property is less than anticipated because the comparable sales in their neighborhood include distressed sales.”

An upward momentum in the local real estate market was noticed by Steve Cook who published an article on November 12, 2009, in the UPI. Cook wrote that “home sales activity across the country is picking up even though we are entering a period when sales usually slow down as the holidays approach.” More specifically, “In Gold Beach, on the south Oregon coast, there are 18 pending sales this November compared to zero pending sales a year ago.” Much of the increase can be attributed to President Obama’s homebuyers’ tax credit that went into effect and provided potential buyers with incentive to purchase immediately.

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Posted in Oregon

Tags: Home Searches Oregon U.S. Housing Market

San Bruno real estate

December 2nd, 2009

: Image via Wikipedia

Real estate in San Bruno has recovered from a slight dip in home property valuation that occurred between December 2008 and June 2009. During that time, the market value average of homes in the area dropped from over $560,000 to about $540,000. According to the most recent Yahoo! Real Estate update on November 16, 2009, the 1-year market value change now shows no change, with the value increasing to about $560,000. The price for foreclosed homes has remained remarkably high and currently sits on a median price of $509,790, just $40,000 lower than the median price of all other homes on the local market.

San Bruno real estate is expected to see a significant rise in home purchase closures following the United States government’s decision to extend and expand the first-time homebuyer’s federal income tax credit. According to Eve Mitchell’s report in the Oakland Tribune on November 16, 2009, “The law extends until June 30, 2010, the deadline for closing escrow for first-time homebuyers to receive a credit worth up to $8,000. The credit was set to expire Nov. 30. It also adds a credit worth up to $6,500 for taxpayers who buy a replacement primary home provided they have lived in their existing home for at least five of the past eight years. Qualifying income limits were raised substantially for both groups of buyers for homes purchased Nov. 7 or later.”

However, San Bruno homes for sale aren’t completely out of the woods yet. In fact, J. W. Elphinstone of the Associated Press and Oakland Tribune wrote on November 15, 2009, that buyers are still very cautious in home buying decisions, according to recent survey results. The uncertainty of the market is still quite visible for all people, the article says. “Home prices rebounded this summer at an annualized pace of almost 7 percent, according to the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index. But with high unemployment and foreclosures clouding the picture, economists debate whether prices will dip again.” More shockingly, “Forty-five percent of Americans worry that they or someone they know will face foreclosure in the next year. And almost 30 percent of those with a mortgage have contacted their lender in the past year to reduce their payments.” Real estate in San Bruno also suffers from an uncertain surrounding community. With the national unemployment rate topping 10 percent and the local San Bruno numbers matching these staggering figures, it’s no wonder why the market will continue to struggle, although it will begin to ease as the pains of the global recession begin to lessen. Experts predict that with increasing job placement in San Bruno thanks to local college recruitment events and job fairs open to the community, there will be a larger number of capable home buyers who will help to re-stimulate the neighborhood housing market.

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Posted in California

Tags: Business Business and Economy California Home Searches Oakland Tribune San Bruno San Bruno California United States

Raleigh real estate update 2009

December 2nd, 2009

: Image via Wikipedia

Unlike several other cities and areas of similar size, Raleigh homes for sale continue to remain steady. From the previous month, the price change of both homes for sale and foreclosures was zero percent, maintaining value at $225,000 and $132,900, respectively, according to Yahoo! Real Estate on November 16, 2009. Interestingly, one-year market value change forecasts show a relatively stead home valuation at around $187,000 whereas many other housing markets have been subjected to erratic pricing or sometimes significant drops in property value.

For the time being, it appears that the majority of Raleigh real estate will be protected by recently-introduced legislation by North Carolina officials to keep struggling families in their homes. The Associated Press reported on November 4, 2009 that the North Carolina Office of the Commissioner of Banks would “would halt foreclosures once homeowners request a loan modification. Now, lenders simultaneously pursue foreclosure while working with homeowners seeking to modify loan terms.” Another reprieve for real estate in Raleigh is pending legislation that would “require the mortgage servicer to respond promptly to homeowners when they ask for assistance.”

According to the Winston-Salem Journal’s staff, a report filed on November 12, 2009, stated that foreclosure filings for October were up from the 2008 but down from the previous month. Unfortunately, the Raleigh-Cary metropolitan statistical area’s number of foreclosed properties jumped 34.9 percent although this was reported to be a unique and isolated month of filings. According to the displayed statistics, foreclosures in the area jumped to 537. However, this isn’t all bad news. Despite the jump in number of foreclosures, the Raleigh median price for foreclosed properties experienced no change, showing positive change in the local real estate market.

More importantly, the federal government’s decision to extend the tax credit for a longer period and to more people has brought hope to thousands of people looking to sell their homes in the Raleigh area. David Bracken of the News Observe wrote on November 6, 2009 that “the number of people eligible for the new credit is large, and real estate agents hope it will increase sales of houses that are priced beyond the reach of most first-time buyers.” The article also mentions that a large number of people are looking to sell urban homes in Raleigh so that they can purchase homes in cheaper areas of North Carolina and other nearby states.

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Posted in North Carolina

Tags: Business Business and Economy Federal government of the United States Foreclosure Home Searches Market value North Carolina United States

San Bruno real estate

November 30th, 2009

San Bruno real estate is expected to see a significant rise in home purchase closures following the United States government’s decision to extend and expand the first-time homebuyer’s federal income tax credit. According to Eve Mitchell’s report in the Oakland Tribune on November 16, 2009, “The law extends until June 30, 2010, the deadline for closing escrow for first-time homebuyers to receive a credit worth up to $8,000. The credit was set to expire Nov. 30. It also adds a credit worth up to $6,500 for taxpayers who buy a replacement primary home provided they have lived in their existing home for at least five of the past eight years. Qualifying income limits were raised substantially for both groups of buyers for homes purchased Nov. 7 or later.”

However, San Bruno homes for sale aren’t completely out of the woods yet. In fact, J. W. Elphinstone of the Associated Press and Oakland Tribune wrote on November 15, 2009, that buyers are still very cautious in home buying decisions, according to recent survey results. The uncertainty of the market is still quite visible for all people, the article says. “Home prices rebounded this summer at an annualized pace of almost 7 percent, according to the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index. But with high unemployment and foreclosures clouding the picture, economists debate whether prices will dip again.” More shockingly, “Forty-five percent of Americans worry that they or someone they know will face foreclosure in the next year. And almost 30 percent of those with a mortgage have contacted their lender in the past year to reduce their payments.” Real estate in San Bruno also suffers from an uncertain surrounding community. With the national unemployment rate topping 10 percent and the local San Bruno numbers matching these staggering figures, it’s no wonder why the market will continue to struggle, although it will begin to ease as the pains of the global recession begin to lessen. Experts predict that with increasing job placement in San Bruno thanks to local college recruitment events and job fairs open to the community, there will be a larger number of capable home buyers who will help to re-stimulate the neighborhood housing market.

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Posted in California

Tags: Home Searches San Bruno

Best Places to Live

June 24th, 2009

: Image by lawgeek via Flickr

Whether you’re a couple looking for your first house or an individual looking to relocate to a new city, you have a lot of concerns when it comes to finding your ideal place to live. There are plenty of considerations to take into account, ranging from simple considerations such as weather and climate to more complex concerns. Far more subtle than geographic location and temperature patterns are the reputation of local schools and organizations, the demographic make up of the community, convenience, and the specific attributes that you are looking for in a city. There are a number of web sites and magazines that attempt to rank the best places to live in the United States and the world, which often use similar methodologies based off of the preferences of individuals and demographic groups.

One of the most important variables in determining the quality of life of a location, area, or community is the reputation of the local schools, service businesses, and other organizations. The educational opportunities of a town are of particularly great concern to relocating families, both on the primary and secondary levels. Suburbs of large cities often have an advantage in this area, since they usually boast better funded school districts as well as a wider selection of colleges and universities. For families that have elderly dependents, the ready availability of high quality nursing homes is critical. Equally important are sports leagues, civic improvement organizations, and athletic clubs.

The physical location and demographic background of a city also goes a far way into determining whether the community is one of the best places to live. Most families are uncomfortable with living in an excessively isolated location, simply because there are fewer places to shop and dine as well as fewer things to see and do in general. Some individuals place a higher weight on a particular socioeconomic status, while others prefer a certain demographic breakdown in terms of diversity. One might also consider the availability of public transportation and major interstates and traffic arteries.

The simple truth is that it is extremely difficult to say with confidence that one city or town is the “best” place to live in the nation or the world. There are of course a number of organizations that attempt to do exactly this, including the Cable News Network, Forbes Magazine, and Sperling’s, but they rarely reach a consensus on any particular community. For example, Relocate America’s top ten list focuses on medium sized and large cities while the top ten list compiled by Sperling’s emphasizes small cities and suburbs. Perhaps more helpful are rankings that emphasize a particular group’s preferences or theorized ideals. These include rankings based off of the ratio of males to females and vice versa, income levels, affordable real estate, and job market. There are even best places to live lists based off of “manliness”, romantic airports, and levels of crime. You can even find rankings personalized to your preferences that recommend a great place to live just for you and your family.