Sacramento Homes Market in World of Hurt

By Alicia Lanier, REALTOR 

Some say that at least one-fourth of the homes for sale in Sacramento are bank-owned foreclosures. And, a quick check of Realtor.com shows there is inventory aplenty wherever you look.  And, now, the Sacramento Bee has proclaimed there’s “no end in sight” to the housing crisis in California’s Capital City.

Evidently potential homebuyers are pausing in wait-and-see mode, despite the city’s decent jobs picture which some pundits believe will only get brighter.

Anyone out there have some inside info on the Sac market for potential home buyers or would-be investors?

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and member of the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – Top 8% of Agents Internationally  www.AliciaLanier.com  408-491-1634

Reminder: All Real Estate Is Local

As the news media winds up today about the National Association of Realtors’ report that July home sales experienced the largest decline in 20 years, please remember this …

All real estate is local. To see how different our Silicon Valley market is when compared to the U.S. market as a whole, check out my blogpost of August 16, 2007 for our July sales report.

You will see that existing home sales countywide in Santa Clara County dropped 7.2% in July 2007 from the same month last year. But, the median selling price continued to inch upward …. by 2.6%, to $700,000 last month compared to $682,250 in July 2006. And, most interestingly, in 8 of the 15 cities  home sales were robust and actually rose year over year.   

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and member of the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – Top 8% of Agents Internationally  www.AliciaLanier.com  408-491-1634

Tips for Homeowners Near Default

 By Alicia Lanier, REALTOR    

Even some homeowners in the Silicon Valley – where skyrocketing prices have provided a measure of protection against high-risk home loans – have now found that rising interest rates pushed their monthly payments past their ability to pay in early 2007.

During the April-June 2007 quarter, lenders throughout California filed the highest number of Notices of Default (the first step in the foreclosure process) in the past decade. Real estate analyst DataQuick said this was ”up 15.4 percent from 46,760 for the previous quarter, and up 158.0 percent from 20,909 for second-quarter 2006.”

Santa Clara County was not immune, with 1,275 homeowners receiving a Notice of Default in the second quarter of 2007 compared to 530 the same period in 2006. This represented a 141 percent increase. Alameda County default notices rose 148 percent. But DataQuick reported that “mortgages were least likely to go into default in Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties.” Those, of course, are areas with some of the highest average prices in the country.

The good news is that only a minority of Silicon Valley homeowners in default will actually see their homes repossessed by their lender and put on the auction block.

If you are a homeowner who is at risk of default – or have already received a Notice of Default - you should take action now. Here are a few suggestions:

Tip 1: First of all, if you took out a home loan in the past year or two, get ahead of the curve!  Immediately gather complete details about your loan to make sure you are not at risk in the future. Find the loan documents you received at closing from the escrow company and review them carefully. If the loan paperwork is confusing, have a conversation with your loan officer and find out if your interest rate will adjust upward, when that will occur, and how that could impact your monthly payments.

Tip 2: Evaluate your situation honestly and realistically. Has an adjustable interest rate pushed your monthly home loan payment past way past your comfort zone? If so, ask yourself whether this is a temporary or permanent condition. If the new payments are truly unaffordable, face the facts and evaluate your options. 

Tip 3: Start by having a conversation with your loan officer. Explain your financial situation frankly and ask about re-financing, whether you qualify, what all the costs would be, and, most importantly, can you afford the payments. If you have other loans on the home, you’ll need to take these into consideration as well. 

Tip 4. Read these good Tips for Troubled Homeowners. on the Better Business Bureau website.

Tip 5. Avoid foreclosure at all cost. Even if you have already received a Notice of Default, you still have a full 90 days to pay the overdue amount.

Tip 6. If you think selling is your best option, contact a REALTOR to learn the current market valuation of your property. In the Silicon Valley, the average days on the market for selling a home in most communities is well under 90 days. This is not the time to call a friend or relative who is a sometime real estate agent. Be sure you work with an experienced professional who knows how to price and sell a home quickly. Hopefully you could walk away from a home sale with some cash. But, if you will need to bring funds to close, you could want a REALTOR who could negotiate a “short sale” with your lender to accept less than that owed. Before committing to a short sale, be sure to explore the impact on your taxes and credit rating.

Tip 7. Find out what sub-prime lenders, your local and state governments and non-profits may be doing to help borrowers in trouble on their mortage loans.

Tip 8. Evaluate your options quickly. The clock is ticking. You don’t want to use up all your savings and then still lose your home and damage your credit rating.

Tip 9: Stay optimistic so you and your family can survive this troubled period – and later thrive again. 

Tip 10. Concerned about possibly losing your home? Ask me to immediately e-mail you a copy of the NAR booklet, How to Avoid Foreclosure and Keep Your Home.

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and in the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – among top 8% of agents internationally.  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com 408-491-1634

Tips For Home Buyers in Today’s Lending Climate

  By Alicia Lanier, Realtor 

There are two types of visitors whom I meet at my open houses: the Looky Lou’s and the Serious Home Buyers. Most, but certainly not all, of the Looky Lou’s usually leave any open house convinced that their own home is best, or at least the best they can afford for the foreseeable future. Serious Buyers, on the other hand, usually want to buy soon or want to be convinced that they should buy.

You Serious Buyers could be impacted by the current Mortgage Meltdown. You will want to be proactive about getting ready to buy even if you haven’t starting looking yet.

Tip 1: If you haven’t done so already, check your credit scores … are they on the average to high side? Do you have reliable income with a couple of years worth of documentation to show a lender? Do you have funds set aside for at least a 5 to 10% down payment plus closing costs (and documentation of funds)? If you meet this basic criteria, call your lender – or ask your REALTOR for a referral. Find out what monthly payments you can afford and what price home is most realistic.

You would be amazed how many people do not talk with a lender until after they find a home they like - and, sadly, it usually does not fit their budget. So, save yourself and your family a lot of time and heartache by first learning what you can afford and then looking at properties in your price range. 

Tip 2: Make sure you work with a reputable, rock-solid lender. In today’s lending climate, you want to make sure that the lender who promises to loan you money today is not gone with the wind when you are ready to close escrow. (And, as soon as feasible after getting into a purchase contract, lock in the interest rate they are promising.)

Tip 3: Once you have a lender pre-approval and know your price range, call your real estate professional (preferably a REALTOR) to schedule a conversation about your wants & needs in a home. Ask questions. Ask for advice. Don’t move forward until you believe this is an agent you can trust and work with effectively. If not, interview others until you find one. A good real estate agent can save you time and money and become a friend. An unprofessional real estate agent can, at best, be difficult to work with and, at worst, could lead to legal problems.

Tip 4: Beware of predatory lenders, those who take advantage of vulnerable individuals. The Law Foundation of Silicon Valley’s fair housing project offers these warning signs:

• The broker or lender does not ask for any details about the client’s income or assets.
• The broker suggests that the client use an unrelated co-signer the broker found for him or her.
• The client spoke to the broker in his or her native language, but all the documents are in English.
• The loan is interest-only or negative amortization (so the amount the client owes increases).
• The broker says, “I’m not charging you anything for this loan.”
• The client is not given a chance to read his or her documents before signing because everything is rushed.
• The client is told to sign over his or her deed so that someone else’s credit can be used to “refinance.”
• Documents are back-dated or blank.
• The client is told, “Don’t worry – we can always refinance you again.”
   

Tip 5: If you don’t yet have a professional real estate agent, go to open houses in neighborhoods where you want to buy. Ask questions. Ask for advice. If you find someone you like, set up a meeting to get better acquainted and “interview” him or her.  Be sure to check their experience and credentials and ask for client references.

Tip 6: Don’t decide to “go it alone” on your home search and just work with the Listing Agent for the home you like. Yes, yes … the Internet gives Buyers fabulous resources to find homes for sale. But a REALTOR will have access to even more resources, will be able to interpret the Internet data for you, help you obtain all the disclosures you’ll want to know about, and have the key to show you homes that aren’t open to the general public. Also, since the fee for the Buyer’s agent is usually built into the listing agreement signed by the Seller, buying a home is one of the few times that you will receive professional services without paying for it. Remember, a home purchase is your biggest investment to date,  and you deserve, and should require, having an advocate dedicated solely to your best interests.

Tip 7: What if your credit scores are abysmal, your paycheck is seasonal and marginal, and your savings wouldn’t buy you a cup of coffee? Sadly, the pricey Silicon Valley housing market – where tight inventory and high demand has kept prices up – may not be a realistic area for you to purchase a home. San Jose, for example, is the 11th largest city in the U.S. with almost a million residents and we have only 3,175 single-family homes for sale today (8/21/07) compared to Sacramento which is the 37th largest city with 6,072 single-family homes for sale. L.A., the 2nd largest, has about the same number of homes for sale as Sacramento. Then there’s San Francisco, the 14th largest city, with only 750 single-family homes for sale today. 

Tip 8. On the other hand, you may purely love our balmy weather … the awesome mountain, forest and Bay views … the quick drive to the Pacific Ocean beaches … and the exciting Silicon Valley mystique. You may refuse the thought of living elsewhere. If so: Then, get to work! Repair your credit, save money, find a new job with higher pay (or maybe find someone to share buying a house with you). The new lending climate will make all of this necessary to buy a home here in the future. 

Tip 9. Want more information on traditional vs. alternative home loans? Ask me to e-mail you one or both of these booklets, Traditional Mortgages: Understanding Your Options and Specialty Mortgages: The Risks and Advantages.

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and in the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – among top 8% of agents internationally.  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com 408-491-1634

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Text only. No markup allowed.

Fast Facts About Current SCC Homes for Sale

Number of Single-Family Residences Listed For Sale in the Multiple Listing Service: 

Under $1 million = 3,517 homes (78% of total)
Over $1 million= 1,010 homes (22% of total)
Over $2 million = 289 (6%)
Over $5 millioin = 38 (0 .08%)
Over $10M = 8 (0.02%).

The three highest priced single-family home listings on the MLS are $15,950,000 in Los Gatos, $15,000,000 in Los Altos Hills, and $14,900,000 in Saratoga.

The three lowest priced single-family home listings on the MLS are $303,198 in Gilroy, $299,999 in Morgan Hill, and $286,248 in Gilroy.

Contact Alicia Lanier 408-491-1634 or AliciaKLanier@gmail.com with any questions specific to your home search or neighborhood. Search for your dream home at www.AliciaLanier.com

The Above Fast Facts Were Provided By: Fred Hibbert, Managing Broker, Coldwell Banker Los Altos (8/17/07)

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Text only. No markup allowed.

Why We Will All Survive This Mortgage Meltdown Crisis

 By Alicia Lanier, Realtor 

Wall Street’s roller coaster stock market last week – and the ensuing media marathon that hinted that the worst may indeed deteriorate further - has left even The Mellow Fellows among us somewhat anxious about our economy in general and our personal home equity and credit purchasing power in particular.

So, do this: Take a deep breath … then exhale … ahhh! Don’t you feel better? Or, to quote a Goldie Oldie song: Don’t Worry, Be Happy.

No Reason to Panic. As a REALTOR, what I see is that the news media is overly fond of the dramatic, particularly any turmoil they suspect could reduce our Silicon Valley housing market into a collapsing deck of cards. I’m not saying there is no fire behind the smoke in Sunday’s San Jose Mercury-News article on Lending crisis: From Wall Street to Main Street to Your Street.  But we will all survive this latest tempest and the potential impact on your own personal situation can be minimal, whether you are a Silicon Valley home owner, home seller, or potential home buyer.

Keep Perspective. Definitely take a long-term view and Keep the Housing News You Hear in Perspective.  At that RealtyTimes.com link, you will see some “predictions” from the past like these:

“The goal of owning a home seems to be getting beyond the reach of more and more Americans. The typical new house today costs about $28,000.” Business Week, 1969

“The median price of a home today is approaching $50,000 … housing experts predict price rises in the future won’t be that great.” National Business, 1977

“The golden age of risk-free run-ups in home prices is gone.” Money Magazine, 1985

“A home is where the bad investment is.” San Francisco Examiner, 1996

One has to chuckle, knowing that a Silicon Valley home investment in any one of those years would have paid handsome rewards. I definitely wish I had invested in a San Francisco home just 10 years ago!

Reality Check: Last month (July ‘07) Santa Clara County had one of the most robust home selling markets in the country (the world?) See my Aug. 17, 2007, blogpost for an overview. We’re in much better shape to survive a shakedown than, say, most of Southern California or Sacramento where foreclosures have skyrocketed while prices and sales have skidded steadily downward, leaving a still-growing inventory of homes for sale.

We’ve had price softening and slower sales in some communities, sure, but we also have a very high percentage of home owners, as opposed to investor-owners, so there’s less risk of widespread panic selling. One has to have a place to live after all, whatever the headlines and Talking Heads are proclaiming.

Also, in July, the percentage of sales price to list price received was above 95% in all SCC cities - and seven of the 15 cities averaged sales-to-list-price percentages above 100%! Multiple offers are obviously still alive and well in some of our SV communities, and our Sellers are not despeately caving in to Buyers on selling price by very much at all. Plus, here’s a look at our homes-for-sale average continuous days on the market, by SCC city:

Campbell, 47 days; Cupertino, 34; Gilroy, 93; Los Altos, 36, Los Altos Hills, 61; Los Gatos; 63, Los Gatos Mountains, 54; Milpitas, 66; Monte Sereno, 14; Morgan Hill, 78; Mountain View, 26; Palo Alto, 20; San Jose, 52; San Martin, 116; Santa Clara, 27; Saratoga, 95; and Sunnyvale, 17.

This “normalizing”, I believe, is far better than the craziness that drove sales and prices up past sustainable levels and also caused too many Buyers to accept high-risk loans that were not good for their pocketbooks.

Backstory (A Lender’s View). One of Princeton Capital’s senior loan officers, Jeff Rhodes, e-mailed an Advisory to Coldwell Banker agents on Friday after the Federal Reserve cut the discount rate by half a percentage point to qualified lenders. Jeff’s message follows; it was pretty upbeat:

“This rate cut is to show support to the banks (remember, this is a liquidity issue, not necessarily a credit crisis) and the Fed is telling the banks to keep doing the right thing, lend $$$ to good qualified people … Bad loans and not-so-creditworthy consumers are going away – or are not being able to borrow money which is good for the long-term health of the American Economy & Housing Market  … Banks and Mortgage Companies that have good business practices and business models will survive and thrive.”  

Thanks, Jeff. We needed to hear that!

Will you be impacted by the current lending climate? Obviously, the first in line will be home buyers, followed closely by any home owners with adjustable interest rate mortgages set to increase during this period of uncertainty. Next will be any home owners needing to sell while the home loans market is shaking out/settling down. And, lastly, all the rest of us whose home equity is a substantial part of our portfolio and who rely on credit for major purchases like homes and autos.

I will be offering some “survival tips” to each of these groups in my blogposts over the next few days … so stay tuned. Meanwhile: Don’t Worry, Be Happy.

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and in the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – among top 8% of agents internationally.  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com 408-491-1634

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

Text only. No markup allowed.

Happy Birthday, Senator Alquist!

 By Alicia Lanier, Realtor 

Several hundred friends of California State Senator Elaine Alquist gathered poolside Friday evening at a North San Jose hotel to wish her a Happy Birthday! and offer support for her 2008 re-election campaign. Well-wishers included dignitaries from almost every major business, labor and Democratic organization in the county - as well as a fair number of elected officials. All were delighted to see her on the road to health after a serious injury earlier this year. “I’m about 80% back to normal,” she told me - and later proved it by enthusiastically joining the Greek dancers in a Zorba-type dance routine as onlookers smiled and clapped.  It was a balmy evening, perfect for this poolside party with its fun music and dancing, good conversation with friends, great food, and opportunities to chat informally with our elected officials.

Among the partygoers were Assemblymembers Jim Beall,  Sally Lieber and Joe Coto. And, by the way, along with Senator Alquist, these three SV assembly members will participate Sunday (August 19) from 12:15 p.to 1:30 p.m. in a public discussion on making health care available to all Californians. The event, sponsored by People Acting in Community Together (PACT) will be at Cambrian Park United Methodist Church, 1919 Gunston Ave., San Jose. (Information: 998-8001 ex. 301). 

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and in the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – among top 8% of agents internationally.  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com 408-491-1634

“Short Sale” A Sign of the Times

 By Alicia Lanier, Realtor 

California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) recently released a “short sale” form that we real estate agents can use with clients who are *upside down* in their loan and other transaction costs when selling their homes. I would have found this useful in a recent transaction in which, after the sellers agreed to drop the listing price in order to get a quicker sale, it became obvious that my Seller client would have to bring an estimated $50K to the closing. In other words, they would not receive any money, but would, instead, be out of pocket about $50K more than they would receive. In this particular case, the client was willing to do so (and, fortunately, able to do so) in order to preserve their credit rating.  Another option would have been for me, as their agent, to contact their lender and present the purchase offer we had and see if the lender would take less than owed by my client. This would have negatively impacted my clients credit – though not as severely as a foreclosure would have done.C.A.R. says key provisions of the Short Sale Listing Addendum include advisories for agents ranging from a list of alternatives to a short sale, what kind of tax implications may be involved for the seller, and other legal consequences that may apply.

In addition, the Short Sale Listing Addendum also provides authorization for the listing agent to advertise a property as a short sale and to contact lenders concerning their approval of a short sale.

Concerned about losing your home to foreclosure? Ask me to immediately e-mail you the booklet, How to Avoid Foreclosure and Keep Your Home.

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and member of the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – among the top 8% of agents internationally.  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com  408-491-1634

Silicon Valley Home Prices Up Again in July ‘07, Sales Down in Some Neighborhoods

By Alicia Lanier, REALTOR 

It was the same song, second (third, fourth, + ….) verse this year for home sales and prices last month in Santa Clara County, the heart of the Silicon Valley. Sales of single-family homes dropped 7.2% in July 2007 from the same month last year. But, the median selling price continued to inch upward …. by 2.6%, to $700,000 last month compared to $682,250 in July 2006. See the stats for the entire 9-county Bay Area at DQNews.com where their analysts attribute the 4.1% median increase in Bay Area prices to the number of expensive homes. ”The Bay Area has not seen the declines in prices or sales volume that we’ve seeing elsewhere in California,” said their president.

Since all real estate is local – and always remember that when you read or hear media reports - let’s take a look at out Multiple Listing Service stats for July 2007 as compared to July of last year and see what’s happening in our cities and neighborhoods.

First of all, although sales volume was down countywide, sales were alive and even robust in some areas. These were the cities where single-family home sales increased – some substantially - in July 2007 over the same month last year: Campbell (my SV hometown), Cupertino, Los Altos, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, Mountain View, Saratoga and Sunnyvale. Both Alamden Valley and Willow Glen (where my Coldwell Banker office is located) neighborhoods in San Jose also registered sales increases.  As you will see in the list of median prices below, all are among the higher priced SV communities.  If you live in any of these cities or neighborhoods, rest easy – your home is probably continuing to appreciate.

Alphabetically, here are the median selling prices by city/community for July 2007 (July 2006 in parentheses):

Campbell – $870,000 median July ‘07 ($840,00 in July 06) 
Cupertino – $1,250,000 ($1,040,000)
Gilroy – $675,000 ($725,000)
Los Altos – $1,800,000 ($1,800,000)
Los Altos Hills – $2,125,000 ($2,300,000)
Los Gatos – $1,670,000 ($1,350,000)
Los Gatos Mountains – $751,000 ($820,000)
Milpitas – $682,500 ($760,000)
Monte Sereno – $2,812,500 ($1,970,000)
Morgan Hill – $858,730 ($1,000,000)
Mountain View – $1,058,500 ($928,000)
Palo Alto – $1,475,000 ($1,355,000)
San Jose – $769,000 ($735,000)
San Martin – $1,000,000 ($1,190,000)
Santa Clara – $750,000 ($700,000)
Saratoga – $1,505,000 ($1,379,000)
Sunnyvale – $930,000 ($830,000) 

Here are median sales prices for selected neighborhoods in San Jose: 

Almaden Valley – $1,080,000 in July ‘07 ($1,022,500 July ‘06)
Alum Rock – $622,000 ($657,500) 
Berryessa – $699,500 ($695,000)
Blossom Valley – $693,000 ($715,000)
Cambrian – $738,500 ($715,000)
Central San Jose – $655,000 ($639,750)
Evergreen – $977,500 ($911,475)
Santa Teresa – $680,000 ($698,000)
Willow Glen – $865,000 ($868,500)     

Let me know if you want stats on your neighborhood.

Alicia Lanier is a REALTOR and member of the Coldwell Banker Diamond Society – Top 8% of Agents Internationally  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com  408-491-1634

                            

Introducing REALTOR Alicia Lanier’s HometownSiliconValley

 By Alicia Lanier, Realtor   

Two months into the New Millenium, I found myself turning in my Texas driver’s license for a California version and arrived in the Silicon Valley to participate in the Dot Com Glory Days.  These were the days of working hard and creatively, enjoying chair massages in the conference room and free sodas and bottled water in the rec room, going along on surprise day-long bus outings to local recreational events for the entire staff, and hearing stories of instant millionaires about Dot Com whose companies went IPO.  The dream was alive!

Only a year later, my 100 colleagues and I arrived at work one day to learn our Dot Com was closing its doors. We didn’t know it then, but we were on the leading edge of the Dot Com Bust. It was the first time in my long professional life that I had ever been downsized, fired, or otherwise left a company without my saying “Buh Bye” first.   The experience made me rethink my career path so -  while first working on contract at eBay and then on staff at Adobe - I decided to study for my California real estate license. I didn’t know then that this was a very popular choice for Dot Com refugees or I might have been less enthusiastic. Today, in the summer of 2007, there is one licensed real estate agent in California for every 46 residents! 

In the early Spring of 2002, I left my direct marketing manager position at Adobe to join Coldwell Banker at its Willow Street office in Downtown Willow Glen. I never looked back. Real estate as a career has introduced me to wonderful new friends, all the delightful communities and neighborhoods in our Valley and Foothills, and given me the flexibility to pursue the joys of being a mother & grandmother, a grassroots activist, and a leader in the Santa Clara County Democratic Club.  

In HometownSiliconValley, I will journal and offer opinions and insider information about what’s happening with Silicon Valley real estate as well as chronicle my adventures and introduce you to the people I meet (both public figures and citizens like you and me), and the places I like best.  And, I will look forward to hearing from you and engaging in dialogue about your experiences and opinions.

My first professional career was as a newspaper reporter so this opportunity to be a “citizen journalist” online is exciting and offers me the opportunity to correct some of the inaccuracies about real estate that too frequently crop up in the mainstream media.  

Alicia Kay Lanier is a REALTOR and a member of Coldwell Banker’s Diamond Society – Top 8% of Agents Internationally  www.AliciaLanier.com  AliciaKLanier@gmail.com Phone 408-491-1634