Homes in North County San Diego: How Affordable?
September 15th, 2008 Categories: Luxury Homes, Market Trends, Rancho Santa Fe, San Diego Real Estate
We are working with more first time San Diego home buyers than ever before. We’re also finding bargains for second home buyers, as well as beach properties for some clever investors who have been waiting in the wings
The loaded question: Which areas offer the best deals for single family homes in San Diego real estate?
The answer is as broad as the question.
There are real estate deals to be found everywhere in San Diego County.
This article, though, deals with San Diego’s highly-desired North County real estate, which covers everything from Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe north through Solana Beach, Carmel Valley, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Oceanside–and east to San Marcos, Vista, Bonsall, Fallbrook, Escondido, Rancho Bernardo, Valley Center, Ramona, Poway, Rancho Penasquitos, and Pauma Valley.
For August, 2008 there were two real estate sales in Rancho Santa Fe, with a median sales price of $3,262,500. This may be the highest median sales price for all San Diego real estate, but Rancho Santa Fe also has one of the longest median times on market with 131 days.
Vista (92083) offers the most affordable real estate in North County San Diego with an August median price of $256,000–and one of the shorter market times at 43 days. With 18 sales in the 92083 zip code, prices there are also down 34 percent from August of last year. With these numbers, 46 percent of San Diego County households could afford to buy a home in Vista–compared to just 23 percent in August, 2007.
Other affordable markets include Escondido, where median prices have dropped between 29 (92026) and 55 (92029) percent since a year ago, depending upon zip code. In the 92029 example, only 4 percent of San Diego’s buyers could have afforded a home there in August 2007. Today, 23 pecent could lafford to buy the median priced home of $409,000.
The only city in North County San Diego to hold absolutely stable in real estate affordability year over year is Del Mar. Only 2 percent of San Diego’s population could afford to buy a home in Del Mar a year ago, and that same percentage holds steady for today. With 5 sales in August, 2008, Del Mar has a median sales price of $1,560,000.
If you would like a full summary report for North County San Diego real estate sales statistics, please feel free to email me: Roberta@SanDiegoPreviews.com or give me a call at 760-402-9101 or 877-818-8197.
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A San Diego Short Sale Solution
April 11th, 2008 Categories: Market Trends, Mortgage News, San Diego Real Estate
More and more, San Diego real estate bargain hunters are making specific requests:
Show me foreclosures, show me great deals, but forget short sales.
Why?
They have learned that about the cost of lost opportunity while they wait an interminably long time for banks to respond. Banks and loan servicers are absolutely overwhelmed with paperwork and pleading phone calls and it can literally take months for a short sale to close.
During that time, vacant homes may be subjected to vandalism, neglect and the elements. Increasingly, real estate agents also avoid showing short sales because of uncertain pricing, uncertain compensation, and the increasing reality that they will be left holding the bag for costs lenders refuse to cover.
Many San Diego Realtors have been burned by lenders and refuse to go down that road again.
The solution?
Prenegotiate all short sales.
Once borrowers indicate they want to sell their over-mortgaged property, lenders should take the initiative to get that liability sold as soon as possible. Order appraisals or BPOs (broker price opinion) immediately, and encourage these borrowers to maintain the property while it is on the market. Perhaps there is an incentive that might be offered to encourage this kind of care? Turn the property over to a competent Realtor, who knows the local market, knows how to market these properties aggressively, and make sure all costs and allocation of fees are clearly defined.
This, as much as anything, might help to restore some order to the markets at the local level and with the international investing community who ultimately provide mortgage funding. Investors in the secondary market know they are going to take a hit. Let them know how much so they can plan and react accordingly. Its the uncertainty thats killing the mortgage market.
Real estate investors, home buyers, and real estate professionals also want to know what price the lender/investor will accept so they can smartly shop and compare properties. Short sales are the chaotic element in the San Diego real estate market because they have uncertain pricing, uncertain timing for closing, and offer uncertain compensation for those who procure the offers.
Once order is restored with that element of the market, I believe we will be on the road to recovery. The failure of mortgage lenders and investors to pre-negotiate short sales will only prolong the agony for all.
Pointing fingers and assigning blame for the mortgage mess wont contribute to a solution. Mistakes and miscalculations were made by all, but its time to get on with resolutions and remember you cant justify a mistake by perpetuating it.
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San Diego Real Estate Defaults: How to Avoid Deficiency Judgments
March 1st, 2008 Categories: Market Trends, New Homes, Real Estate News, San Diego Real Estate
I am a huge believer in individual responsibility and paying my own way in life even if its the price of an expensive mistake.
But what about San Diego area homeowners who absolutely cannot hang onto their homes any longer? What are they to do when rising interest rates cause payments to exceed monthly incomes and they cannot refinance because their homes are now worth less than what they owe the mortgage lender?
They often feel they are stuck in a can of worms.
We receive lots of calls from concerned and ethical San Diego homeowners in this situation. They are ashamed, embarrassed and scared. Aside from the trauma of losing their homes, they fear income tax consequences and the possibility of a deficiency judgment from their lender(s).
I had intended to address this thorny issue here sometime next week, but blogging friend, New York real estate broker and attorney Joseph Ferrara tackled mortgage default issue this morning in an excellent article over at Sellsius Real Estate Blog.
He points out that income tax consequences for forgiven mortgage debt were thrown out last fall and that the chances of a deficiency judgment may be slim especially if the purchase moneoy mortgage(s) were not refinanced. And even if they were, most lenders will choose to foreclose under the terms of the trust deed instead of the courts.
I encourage you to read and bookmark the article!
Search the San Diego MLS for San Diego real estate bargains throughout the county.
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Carlsbad FSBOs and Short Sales: Uh Oh
February 18th, 2008 Categories: At Home in Aviara, Carlsbad Real Estate, La Costa, Market Trends
by Eve Sieminski and Roberta Murphy
Eve and I spent the afternoon studying For Sale by Owner (FSBO) sites and researching these Carlsbad listings and Carlsbad real estate through our local San Diego MLS.
The results are very interesting–and were enough to keep us at this real estate task for most of the day.
Some casual observations:
- The vast majority of these Carlsbad FSBO listings are overpriced. Are the owners relying on outdated information from Zillow or wishful thinking when pricing their homes?
- Many of those who purchased their Carlsbad homes in 2005-2006 may face difficulty if they need to sell today.
- The majority of the advertised FSBOs are in short sale position. In other words, these sellers owe more than what their homes are likely worth. This leads us to wonder: How prepared are these sellers to negotiate with lenders and keep buyers on the line?
- We observed several expired listings in Carlsbad that are now listed as For Sale by Owner. Prices generally stayed at the original listed price. Might price have been a reason these homes didnt sell in the first place?
- Carlsbad homes in the 92011 zip are selling the fastest, and seem to be holding values the best. This is because this area is closest to the beach and includes the planned community of Aviara. Market absorption rate here is 39 weeks.
- La Costa homes in the 92009 zip are burdened with a number of newer subdivisions including La Costa Greens, La Costa Oaks, La Costa Ridge, and Bressi Ranch. Most of these Carlsbad homes sold in the 2005-2007 timeframe and those re-entering the market now will have difficulty breaking even and may even face a loss. Market absorption time in the 92009 zip is running 49 weeks.
- North coastal Carlsbad in the 92008 zip code surprisingly has the longest market absorption rate: 60 weeks. This could be because many of the homes are older and current buyers are favoring newer properties.
- Northeastern Carlsbad in the 92010 zip has a market absorption rate of 50 weeks. This area is predominantly populated by the newer construction in Calavera Hills, but also has some established older neighborhoods.
Eve and I are continuing our market studies so that we can better advise our clients who need to sell their North San Diego County homes. Real estate is selling, and we are even managing to garner multiple offers for our attentive Carlsbad sellers.
All too often, a home seller assumes that because his or her home has granite surfaces, stainless appliances and a jetted bathtub the home is worth substantially more than an unimproved one down the street.
We are finding, though, that most buyers will bargain for the cheaper home and use the savings to make improvements to their own liking.
Read also:
San Diego Real Estate in the Tank: Fact or Fiction?
San Diego Luxury Builder: 2007 Worst in 40 Years
Where is the San Diego Market Bottom?
San Diego Realtors Seeing Double¦Offers
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Are You the High Bidder for Your San Diego Real Estate Listing?
February 16th, 2008 Categories: Carlsbad Real Estate, Encinitas, Market Trends, Real Estate Juice, Real Estate News
The San Diego real estate market is abuzz with talk about real estate auctions and the enormous turnouts they are generating. Inventory is being quickly absorbed by competing and hungry investors, who bid against one another hoping to buy a San Diego home below market value.
All of this leads us to wonder about overpriced listings and sellers who are unsuccessfully holding out for unrealistic prices.
I recall years ago when my sister was in escrow with a very generous offer on her home. She began to have second thoughts about selling, and worried endlessly that she had made a mistake in selling her home at such a price.
Would you buy that house today for the price your buyer is paying? I asked.
No, she replied.
Well, if you dont sell, you will have bought the home for that price.
When overpriced homes sit on the market and fail to attract a buyer, the seller has effectively become the high bidder for the listing.
By failing to price a property to the market, the seller creates another expired listing and has outbid all other potential buyers.
We work with North San Diego County expired listings, and encourage our savvy sellers to price their property so that we can create a bidding war. Hungry, deal-seeking buyers of San Diego real estate are flocking to aggressively-priced homes. The majority of our listings generate multiple offers and end up selling close to market value in a very short period of time.
Better to price a listing as a best buy and sell quickly than to languish and expire on the market.
Besides, its generally best not to be the most aggressive bidder for your own property.
If you are interested in knowing how to create a bidding war when you sell your home, please call Roberta or Scott Murphy at 877-818-8197 or directly at 760-402-9101 (Roberta) or 760-613-6190 (Scott).
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