Archive for the 'Buyers' Category
1st Quarter San Diego Home Sales – Get the Facts
Posted by Diane White | Currently 2 Comments »
The number of sales for the 1st Quarter 2009 have almost doubled over 1st Quarter 2008, according to Sandicor/MLS statistics, and they are selling faster:
2008 4,519 Solds
• $536,451 Average SP • $295.11 Average SP per SF • 75 DOM
2009 8,822 Solds
• $356,532 Average SP • $210.82 Average SP per SF • 65 DOM
DataQuick is reporting the number of sales have increased in resale and new homes over February. Click on the images below to read the full reports:
What is happening in April? Here are some ineresting facts:
- 13,317 Active Listings – Average List Price is $819,538
- 7,064 Currently Pending – Average List Price $362,047
- 1,819 Sold Listings - Average Sold Price $374,456
- Average Sold Price is 5% higer then 1st Quarter Sales
- Average Sales Price to Listing Price is 98%
Average home prices increasing in April? Absolutely no surprise to me. Especially in the lower priced homes. It is common to have multiple offers and prices going over the asking price. I wrote a contract this week on a property that had 6 offers that were $30,000 plus over the asking price of $320,000 and 47 people trying to get qualified to make additional offers….47!
There may be more bank owned properties coming on the market, but there are plenty of buyers who will sweep them up quickly. If you are considering getting into the market now, get pre-approved first…you need to move very fast. Call me if would like specific area information.
Here is another article you might find interesting: Investors – Is Cash King?
Related Posts: Area Information, Area Statistics, Buyers, Investment Properties, Market Trends, Real Estate News, Uncategorized
A Downtown Celebration of Earth Day on April 22nd
Posted by Ana Gramling | Currently 2 Comments »
Earth Day was founded in 1970 and focuses on environmental awareness. It is celebrated annually on April 22. The grassroots efforts now proudly boasts an international audience and has made a permanent change in our national priorities.
As a downtown condo homeowner and an active homeowner’s association board of director, I wanted to participate in Earth Day to make a difference in our condo community in East Village. Besides, I thought any cost savings from energy conservation to an individual homeowner or to our homeowners association would be great! I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t want to save a little cash right now!!!
My mission was to look to our local community for help and to make awareness of “going green” and education of Earth Day our focus. SDG&E kindly donated recycle/reusable shopping bags and the Center for Sustainable Energy provided collateral material and several of our maintenance vendors/suppliers for our building have also agreed to participate by contributing recyclable products. Our homeowners association has posted flyers notifying our residents of our celebration which will take place in our community room (we call it our “Living Room”…you know the urban lingo) and our property management company is going to do a “meet and greet”. So, all-in-all, I think we’re off to a pretty good start of observing and celebrating Earth Day! I’m proud to be a part of this celebration and hope we can make a difference in our neighborhood with the vision that other downtown communities will follow our lead. By the way, our community has already made strides in going green by installing a drip watering system to our exterior landscaping and we have reduced our common area lighting by 50%!!!
I’m not only a Realtor who farms and lives in the downtown San Diego market, I’m a native San Diegan and I care about our community and love to share it with others. If you have considered buying in the downtown San Diego area…let’s spend a little time touring the neighborhoods (“districts”). I’m just a phone call away at (858) 688-3363. Click here to check out my previous blog articles to see what neighborhood choices downtown has to offer you. You too, might just fall in love with the lifestyle and culture of downtown San Diego and can also call yourself an “urbanite”.
EARTH DAY TIPS:
Save Energy
- Open refrigerator door only long enough to get the food items you need.
- Organize refrigerator shelves for easy access to foods you use the most.
- Use the Energy Star program to find energy efficient products for your home. The right choices can save families about 30% ($400 a year) while reducing our emissions of greenhouse gases. Whether you are looking to replace old appliances, remodel, or buy a new house, Energy Star can help and is the government backed symbol for energy efficiency.
- Turn off appliances and lights when you leave the room.
- Use the microwave to cook small meals. (It uses less power than an oven).
- Have leaky air conditioning and refrigeration systems repaired.
- Cut back on air conditioning and heating use if you can.
- Replace incandescent light bulbs with qualified Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs (CFL). If every household in the U.S. replaced one light bulb with a CFL, it would prevent enough pollution to equal removing one million cars from the road.
Use Less Water
- Don’t let the water run while shaving or brushing your teeth.
- Install water-savings showerheads and ultra-low-flush toilets.
- Take short showers instead of tub baths.
- Scrape, rather than rise dishes before loading into the dishwasher and only wash full loads.
- Wash only full loads of laundry or use the appropriate water level or load size selection on your washing machine.
- Don’t forget to clean the dryer lint filter after each load.
- Buy high-efficient plumbing fixtures and appliances.
- Check all faucets, pipes and toilets for leaks…did you know a leaky toilet can waste 200 gallons a day!!!
- Water your lawn or garden during the coolest part of the day (early morning is best).
- Sweep outside instead of using a hose.
Reduce/Reuse/Recycle
Practice the three R’s: First reduce how much you use, then reuse what you can and then recycle the rest. Dispose of what’s left in the most environmentally friendly way.
Reduce
- Buy permanent items instead of disposables.
- Buy and use only what you need
- Buy products with less packaging.
- Buy products that use less toxic chemicals.
Reuse
- Repair items as much as possible.
- Use durable coffee mugs.
- Reuse boxes.
- Purchase refillable pens and pencils.
- Donate extras to people you know or to charity instead of throwing them away.
- Reuse grocery bags as trash bags.
Recycle
- Recycle paper, plastic, glass bottles, cardboard and aluminum cans.
- Recycle electronics.
- Close the loop and buy recycled products and products that use recycled packaging.
Going Green??? Check out the following websites for additional tips:
www.energycenter.org
www.energystar.gov
www.sandiego.gov/environmental-services
www.sandiego.gov/wateremergency
www.sdge.com
Related Posts: "Going Green" in Real Estate, Buyers, Condos & Townhomes, Downtown, Find A Home, Great Real Estate Deals, San Diego
Free Event Plus Healthy Food for you Foodies!
Posted by Adrienne Dimeno | Leave A Comment »
Earth Fair 2009′ SundayThe 19th
Balboa Park 10:00Am-5PM
Over 400 Exhibitors.
Annual EarthFair in Balboa Park is the largest free annual environmental fair in the world. EarthFair 2009 will be our 20th anniversary – the 40th anniversary of Earth Day! Each year, the EarthFair draws around 70,000 visitors.
Bring the Kids too! Lots to do.
Related Posts: "Going Green" in Real Estate, Activities & Events, Agent Services, Area Information, Buyers, Carmel Valley, Coastal Living
Investors – Is Cash King? – Get the Facts
Posted by Diane White | Currently 1 Comment »
Do you get a better buy when you pay cash for a property in San Diego? The answer is perhaps. According to Sandicor MLS statistics for the 1st Quarter 2009, cash buyers pay 95% of the listed price. Whereas financed sales pay a higher percentage.
Interestingly, however, buyers financed through government loans pay less per square feet.
6,944 1st Quarter Solds (carrybacks etc not shown)
1,509 Cash Sales
• $308,833 Avg SP • $195.06 SP/SF • 95% SP/LP
3,148 Conventional Sales
• $422,974 Avg SP • $234.72 SP/SF • 98% SP/LP
1,548 FHA Sales
• $262,391 Avg SP • $184.67 SP/SF • 100% SP/LP
656 VA/CALVet Sales
• $305,48 Avg SP • $188.96 SP/SF • 100% SP/LP
Cash buyers have some edge, they usually do not ask for an appraisal and remove all contingencies quickly therefore it is a faster transaction. Banks like that….however, they often will take higher bids that are financed if the buyer is well qualified and have good down payments. A significant note, cash transactions have doubled over the 1st quarter of 2008 which was 10.5%…investors are buying.
Competition is fierce for investors now. The lower priced homes most often have multiple offers. I have seen 14 in one or two days and up to 2 dozen or more especially in bank owned properties.
Not only are investors buying up a storm, buyers who want to buy a home are as well. Bank owned properties are already reduced, the value is there. Home buyers are taking advantage of the lower prices and low interest rates. FHA loans have increased from 2.6% the 1st quarter of 2008 to 22.3% this year!
If you are looking to buy an investment property or are a first time buyer looking for good value, contact me for more information.
Related Posts: Area Statistics, Buyers, Foreclosures, Great Real Estate Deals, Interest Rates, Investment Properties, Market Trends, Real Estate News, Uncategorized
Approved Short Sales Increase In North San Diego County
Posted by Pam & Joanna | Leave A Comment »
If you have been shopping for homes anywhere at all, you will soon realize the pain and agony of the all too familiar Short Sale. The market is flooded with them.
Many buyers and their agents are refusing to even look at them anymore. The length of time it takes to approve and the disappointment of being rejected or out bid after waiting months for an answer is just too difficult for many buyers to take.
It looks like things might be changing though. Suddenly, even the short sales are getting multiple offers and are refusing anymore showings or anymore backup offers.
You have to be quick in this market. If something good comes on the market at a good price, you better grab it, and don’t pussyfoot around about it either. Put in your highest and best right up front, if you don’t, someone else will come along right after you and push you right out of your position with a stronger and better offer.
I took a look at a few cities in San Diego North County to see what percentages of shorts sales were on the market and how many of them are actually being sold. I was pleasantly surprised to see how many are currently pending sale. This must mean that the banks are finally approving them and are possibly getting their systems in place to deal with them at a more efficient level.
The cities I took a look at were Escondido, San Marcos, and Valley Center, here is what I found;
902 Active listings with 460 of them being Short Sales, that is 51%
367 Pending listings with 238 of them being Short Sales, that is 64%
534 Sold properties year-to-date with 139 of them being Short Sales, that is 26%
I am highly encouraged by the percentage I see for the current pending listings. It actually looks like we could be shifting a bit here. Maybe the banks are catching up and they are tired of owning homes.
This is not to say that we have seen the last of the foreclosures though. I think we still have quite a ways to go.
If you are out looking and have been shying away from the short sales, maybe you should give it another chance. Many of the Short Sales out there have already been approved and you wont necessarily have to wait through it.
Whether you are a buyer or a seller, if you need help in the Short Sale department, you can give us a call. We are here to help and we answer our phones.
Pam and Joanna
760-580-1615 or 760-580-1630
Related Posts: Buyers, Market Trends, San Diego, Short Sales
