California’s Unsold Inventory Index (UII), a closely watched index indicating the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate, declined to 3.8 months in December, the lowest level in five years, according to the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.). By comparison, the UII for existing, single-family homes stood at 5.6 months in December 2008.

Some economists believe that California’s housing inventory is artificially low because many
discretionary sellers—homeowners who do not have to sell their homes—are waiting on the
sidelines until home prices rise. Others believe there are more foreclosures to come, as
unemployment in the state continues to rise. However, C.A.R. predicts that foreclosures will
remain flat in 2010 compared with 2009, as lenders are listing properties for sale at a more
metered pace.

California’s housing market has shown signs of stabilization since early last year. Sales of
existing, single-family homes bottomed out in August 2007, and the median home price reached its trough in February 2009.

In December, the median price of an existing, single-family home rose to $306,820, an 8.4
percent rise year-over-year, the second consecutive year-over-year increase, and the 10th
straight month-over-month increase, according to C.A.R.’s December sales and price report.

With affordability near-historic highs, low interest rates, and home buyer tax credits, many
properties in California are receiving multiple offers and sparking bidding wars. Home buyers
who find themselves in bidding wars should work closely with their REALTOR® to ensure they are crafting realistic offers that are more likely to be accepted by the seller.

Thousands of potential home buyers are expected to converge the weekend of March 13 and March 14 at the Los Angeles Convention Center for the FREE third annual Southern California Home Buyer’s Fair. The event is sponsored by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) and the Los Angeles Times.

The Southern California Home Buyer’s Fair, open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday, March 13, and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, March 14, features more than 50 educational “how-to” seminars designed to help home buyers navigate today’s real estate market with confidence and peace of mind. Seminar topics range from understanding home prices and monitoring and fixing credit to applying for a mortgage and the importance of the home inspection. Several of the sessions also will be offered in Spanish. The event is free to the public. In addition, the first 200 attendees each day will receive a free movie ticket (one ticket per person).

C.A.R. also has created a consumer fact sheet about the event. Please visit http://www.homebuyersfair.com/ for more information.

January 28, 2010
Long Beach, California

Real Estate News: Beyond the Headlines from C.A.R.

The California Association of Realtors has just released their latest Beyond the Headlines report to keep California home buyers and sellers up to date on recent developments in the real estate market.  The Beyond the Headlines report provides articles published in the past week of great interest to real estate market watchers.

This week features articles from prominent sources including The Wall Street Journal, CNN Money, The Mercury News, Bloomberg, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times.

Whether you are a buyer or seller of real estate, and irrespective of your timeframe, be it today, next week, next month, or many months into the future, you need to understand the trends taking place in the real estate market and understand the powerful influences on the market.

The Beyond the Headlines publication makes it easy by gathering highly relevant and timely articles and presenting them in one easy to read format.

Access the California Real Estate Weekly update for January 28, 2010

I’m sure you’ll benefit from reading the articles provided every week, so without further ado let me identify the topic covered in the latest newsletter.
This week, the following real estate related articles appear:

California’s home inventory shrinks to 5- year low – The Wall Street Journal

Get help – before you fall behind on your FHA mortgage – CNN Money

Home sizes fall as builders, buyers embrace economic reality – The Mercury News

Reviving down-payment-assistance programs faces FHA opposition – Bloomberg

Stakes are high as government plans exit from mortgage markets – The Washington Post

No plans for mortgage-principal reductions – The Wall Street Journal

Home prices rise for 6th straight month in November – San Francisco Chronicle

New home sales fall 7.6 percent in December – Los Angeles Times

To access all of the articles, open a convenient PDF file using the following link:

Access the California Real Estate Weekly update for January 28, 2010

Underwater with your mortgage?

If you owe more on your home than you can recover from the sale of your home minus the cost of selling, what should you do?

First of all, there are many people in the same situation and largely this is not the fault of the homebuyer.  Market price declines have been historically large and predicting this outcome was difficult.

Although many indicators of problems were available, the market ignored the very same problems for a long time while home prices soared.  So don’t blame yourself for bad judgment.

And if you are an investor and bought properties with the hope of flipping for a profit, it can be an important lesson that market forces can change rapidly and it’s important to be nimble with your investments, and sometimes prudent to get out with a small loss instead of riding a price decline to the bottom.

Anyway, if you are underwater, the best thing you can do is to educate yourself about the options.  You do have options.  Before you slide into delinquency or all the way to foreclosure, get some advice.

It’s easy to get paralyzed by fear and wait and wait, unable to move forward.  But the longer you wait, the less effective some of your options will be, so you are actually making things worse.

The right course of action will be different for each individual due to their own unique set of circumstances.

Give me a call if you need help sorting out your next step.

Phil McCollum
BRC Realty Group
562-225-5234

January 21, 2010
Long Beach, California

Real Estate News: Beyond the Headlines from C.A.R.

The California Association of Realtors has just released their latest Beyond the Headlines report to keep California home buyers and sellers up to date on recent developments in the real estate market.  The Beyond the Headlines report provides articles published in the past week of great interest to real estate market watchers.

This week features articles from prominent sources including CNN Money, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee.

Whether you are a buyer or seller of real estate, and irrespective of your timeframe, be it today, next week, next month, or many months into the future, you need to understand the trends taking place in the real estate market and understand the powerful influences on the market.

The Beyond the Headlines publication makes it easy by gathering highly relevant and timely articles and presenting them in one easy to read format.

Access the California Real Estate Weekly update for January 21, 2010

I’m sure you’ll benefit from reading the articles provided every week, so without further ado let me identify the topic covered in the latest newsletter.

This week, the following real estate related articles appear:

Harder to get an Uncle Sam mortgage – CNN Money

You can’t file for your $8,000 home buyer tax credit – CNN Money

What home sellers don’t tell buyers – The Wall Street Journal

Government mortgage plan aids 7% of borrowers – CNBC

Low rates for just a few – The New York Times

Investors dominate home flipping, auctions –San Francisco Chronicle

Rates on 30-year home loans fall to 4.99 pct – Sacramento Bee

Home loan applications jump 9% as interest rates fall

To access all of the articles, open a convenient PDF file using the following link:

Access the California Real Estate Weekly update for January 21, 2010