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Marin Real Estate January 2010 Update

Friday, 05 February 2010 17:59

What is happening for Marin Real estate in January? It is often said that winter is a great time to purchase real estate in Marin.  Many of my Marin buyer clients have purchased wonderful homes at great values in winter because the homes may not show as well or because the sellers have decided that they are committed to opening the next chapter in their lives and therefore will sell their home at “market value”.  Market value is what a willing AND able buyer will pay.  Today that means a lot of different things.  What would you do if you encountered one of these 5 recent Marin Real Estate situations that all took place in Southern Marin in January?

1)     The day before this house was to close and after removing contingencies the buyer walked. No fault of property; everything was ready to close--but the buyer lost their enthusiasm for the house overnight and decided to walk costing them 3% of purchase price.

2)     The seller, after diligently working to prepare their home for sale and after less than a week on the market received an all cash offer well above the list price with only 3 days to remove contingencies. But the seller then changed their mind and decided not to sell. Buyer then offered more money hoping to sway the seller to no avail. Seller pulled the house from the market.

3)     A high quality home underpriced by listing agents received 10 offers.  Agents on the listing side were not easy to work with and did not divulge critical information necessary to make timely decisions. One of the highest bidders, an all cash offer walked because they couldn’t get the info they needed.

4)      A Short Sale (seller owes more than house is worth) received 8 offers but no one knows what the bank will accept and how long it will take to negotiate-could be months, putting buyers’ needs in limbo.

5)     A house on the market for over 100 days at a reduced price finally went into escrow for a first time buyer. The Appraisal doesn’t appraise due to issues pertaining to mold and the lender won’t lend on it.  All these situations are real and require a tremendous amount of skill and diligence to work with to have successful results. It also takes a committed team of Real estate agents that are knowledgeable and professional to work through these issues which at times can be challenging. But you never know..it is my job to make sure that your transaction is as smooth and seamless as possible and you never know..it just might be that way!   Check my website for the Marin Market Update for statistics on January activity by city and price point. Enjoy!

The Federal Reserve Board Meeting

Tuesday, 26 January 2010 23:03

 

January 26, 2010  Important information from one of my trusted mortgage brokers, Jill Carothers at All California Mortgage: Jill CarothersMortgage AdvisorAll California Mortgage This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 415-686-0699  The Federal Reserve Board (the Fed) is holding the first of its eight scheduled meetings for the year, which takes place at approximate six week intervals.  This first meeting is particularly important, with two issues requiring our close attention. The first is the Fed's language.  In all policy statements during 2009, the Fed's statement said that present economic conditions should "warrant exceptionally low levels of the Federal Funds Rate for an extended period."  If the Fed  does not comment that the Fed Funds Rate will remain low for an "extended period," this will signal a change in their accommodative policy.  The result will be a sell off of mortgage bonds, causing home loan rates to move up.   The second issue deals with the upcoming expiration of the mortgage backed security purchase program.  The Fed has been saying that this program, which has ensured liquidity and low rates in home lending, will end as planned on March 31st.  But there has been speculation that the Fed may add to their purchases and extend the deadline.  With the expiration nearing, the Fed's guidance on this topic will be very important to the direction of mortgage bond prices and home loan rates.     So it is the language indicating the course of the Feds policy over the next several months rather than policy changes which will dictate the market reaction.  The Fed Funds Rate is expected to remain unchanged at this meeting.     Thank you Jill for this….together we will be keeping a close eye on the news coming from the meeting and analyzing what effect any changes could have on our clients.

 

2009 YTD Update

Sunday, 24 January 2010 22:29

 

As we welcome the new decade of 2010 I thought I would provide you with some data in regard to 2009 and some thoughts for 2010.  I hope this information is helpful to you or someone you know who may be considering buying or selling In Marin.  It is difficult to make predictions this early in the year but,  I am noticing that buyers are ramping to make purchases in 2010 that they may have been putting off.  I think many buyers feel that finally we may have hit the “bottom” that they have been waiting for. Interest rates will remain historically low but are anticipated to creep up in 2010 to be in the 6’s.  Buyers notice a lack of inventory (supply) and are hopeful for more choices as the year moves forward.

Meanwhile, sellers are increasingly more aware of the reality of the market and are making decisions based on lifestyle.  Some sellers have made decisions to stay put for now and others are deciding that transitioning to a new chapter in their life is more important than waiting for a perceived increase in sales price at some unknown point in the future.  

The question is will the amount of buyers jumping into the market create a positive year for sellers?  Or will they just be hunting the bargains, REO’s etc… That remains to be seen.  Ideally we will see Days on Market (DOM) go down, see a stabilizing of prices and a higher list price to sales price ratio YTD 2010 vs.2009. 

As always,  I welcome any comments or discussion that you would like to have and am grateful for your referrals.   My blog is www.MyMarinHomesblog.com

Warmly,

Linda

 

Are You A Buyer Or A Seller?

Sunday, 22 November 2009 20:54

 

Many people ask me…how is the market?  It depends if you are a buyer or a seller…sellers need to be realistic if they want to sell their homes right now.  While it is a great time to be a move up client it is very hard to know how best to go about the transition:  Is it best to sell first then rent while you look? Or buy what you want when you find it and then sell?  Sellers have to ask themselves:  How important is it to transition from this home in order to move on?  Can you keep your home as an income property while enjoying the lifestyle you want? Having what one wants in their life with their family is sometimes more important than getting the most money for one’s home.  These are all very individual decisions and all important to discuss.

 

What if you want to buy?  New escrows are up 128% from October ’08.  More homes have gone into escrow in October 2009 than in any other month in the last two years.  Why this renewed confidence all of a sudden? Is there increased confidence in our economy? How long will low interest rates last? There is no doubt that we are in the middle of the perfect storm for buyers:  Low interest rates and excellent home values (for Marin that is!).  Plus, recent legislation has been passed that maintains the existing temporary conforming loan limits.  This is great news for our area! The bigger problem for many of my clients right now is finding the right house.  In Marin we have a shortage of inventory and each home is unique.  Buyers find themselves having to be flexible when it comes to choosing their home because the homes aren’t always going to be exactly what they envision and they may need to do some cosmetic work or remodeling to have it be exactly the way they want in the neighborhood they want.  Sometimes we can find them the perfect house but it is not in the neighborhood they want or vice versa.  Tough situation….lately, I have been successful in finding several clients homes that are off the market.  Given very specific needs, we can always find you what you want.  However, we may have to look at inventory that is not currently on the market and I use my extensive networks for that.  When you look for a home, what is most important to you -the neighborhood or the house?