Mike’s Real Estate Show

  Now that the extremely hot real estate market has cooled to Eskimo Sundae temperature, a flood of “new” regulations can be found glowing in the embers of this once bonfire of the equities! Just as our real estate market sparked new disclosures regarding making offers with no inspections and paying in excess of listed prices, we now have guidelines warning of “exotic” lending. This is know as the “Closing the barn door after the horse has gotten free” disclosure system. For all of those consumers who got the “exotic” option ARM loans you now are feeling the pain. On an “option” arm you have three payment plans and the loan is adjustable. Many opted to pay the “negative amortization” option which  means you are NOT even paying interest only hence the deferred interest gets added to your principal and up goes your loan amount! Read the rest of this entry »

Highlights of C.A.R.’s resale housing figures for August 2006:
·                     Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled 442,150 in August at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations statewide. Statewide home resale activity decreased 30.1 percent from the 632,240 sales pace recorded in August 2005. The statewide sales figure represents what the total number of homes sold during 2006 would be if sales maintained the August pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.
·                     The median price of an existing, single-family detached home in California during August 2006 was $576,360, a 1.6 percent increase over the revised $567,320 median for August 2005, C.A.R. reported. The August 2006 median price increased 1.7 percent compared with July’s revised $566,940 median price.
·                     .C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index for existing, single-family detached homes in August 2006 was 6.8 months, compared with 2.6 months (revised) for the same period a year ago. The index indicates the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate.
·                     Thirty-year fixed mortgage interest rates averaged 6.52 percent during August 2006, compared with 5.82 percent in August 2005, according to Freddie Mac. Adjustable mortgage interest rates averaged 5.64 percent in August 2006 compared with 4.55 percent in August 2005.
·                     The median number of days it took to sell a single-family home was 52 days in August 2006, compared with 29 days (revised) for the same period a year ago.

  When the market was shooting to the stratosphere many said it would not last ( agreed), some gave us the month of year of the dreaded bursting of the bubble (I still don’t belive in the bubble!). Now, on the way to a different market (a “Shifting” market) here are some quotes and thoughts from some folks to who get paid to give their opinions!! Read the rest of this entry »

  Excuse me for not putting up the last couple of radio shows but I was at the Monterey Festival and then at the Keller Williams “Mega Camp” and had to leave early Sunday morning. Last week’s show was taped. This week I’ll have Pete Phillippee join me again and we’ll be discussing the the great interest rates and this shifting market. I’ve written other posts regarding the latest economic predictions for the market from our chief California Association of Realtors economist, Leslie Appleton-Young and also the National Association of Realtors, David Lereah. We’ll be discussing in more detail where this market is going and what the long term predictions others are saying. Read the rest of this entry »

Today on the show is a mixed bag. We’ll be talking home pricing (what else is everyone talking about!!). Plus my “Tales from the Trenches”–it’s getting to be a war out there! But here is a link to a study by the OFHEO which you must read! The Study is by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (Whew! Say that fast 7 times!). I’ve quoted this web site many times in the past on the radio show. It is a portend of things to come. These are the folks who had the landmark study stating that many “Boom” markets don’t bust at all but go on long “flat” runs and then eventually take off again. But go to Lou Barnes column today and read his “take” on this data. It is eye-opening. I’ll touch on it and give you my “local” take on the show. Read the rest of this entry »

  Currently we have near 2800 active listings on the market in Sonoma County. This is a lot! We’ve gone from 2.9 months on the market to over 7. So the competition is intense. If you are a Seller you need your house to be spit-shined clean, staged, with a welcoming, smiling face. Imagine now, much to my chagrin, I call a seller to show their property and I get an incredibly rude, hostile answering machine. I’m trying to make an appointment to show their property to a qualified, motivated buyer. I get a message stating, in a major attitude voice, “Hello, if you are calling us and we don’t know you, we don’t want to know you! Please hang up and dont’ bother us again. If we do know you then leave a message!”. Now what’s wrong with this message? Besides everything? Well, if you’re a Realtor you may just hang up and redial thinking, “I must have mis-dialed”. But then you get the same message and start thinking, “Geez, do I want to show this property and put up with this attitude during the negociations and escrow?”.  I think the Seller is getting off on the wrong foot with the real estate community! Read the rest of this entry »

  This week on “The Real Estate Show”, 1350AM, KSRO, 9 to 10AM: Yes, College Football is in the and on the Air! And as usual we’ll have the “biggest Blow-out” of the weekend! It’s usually a Super Big Ten team playing Northen Idaho Tech! I just had to turn my head from the Cal score!! Number 9 and falling!

The affable Mr. Pete Phillippee  is in studio to discuss qualifying for home loans and what the current “slide” in rates means long term to us all. If you wish to get a hold of Pete call him at: 707-521-4400(office) or 707-481-2737(cell)

  Lou Barnes column for this week starts out:

The two-month-long bond rally has hit bottom. It’s been fun: From a peak at 5.24%, the 10-year T-note made it to 4.73% yesterday, which has taken mortgages from just below 7% to just below 6.50%. Read the rest of this entry »