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Orange County Housing Report: April 29, 2010
End of Tax Credit Won't End Demand: At the stroke of midnight on April 30th the Federal first time home buyer tax credit will come to an end, but it doesn't appear that it will spell the end of demand. Everybody has been looking to the end of the tax credit as if it were likened to the infamous Y2K predictions of a little more than decade ago. Remember those days? I had a neighbor who bought a trash can from the local hardware store and filled it with bottled water and canned goods claiming that the end of life as we knew it was upon us. Governments, banks, power companies, airports, traffic systems and more were all supposed to fail on the first day of the year 2000. Nothing really happened. For Orange County real estate, the end of the tax credit is not going to have much of an impact either...
Orange County Housing Report: April 15, 2010
A Changing Market: Talk to an Orange County buyer, especially a first time home buyer, and you will quickly find that the real estate market is exasperating. Currently there are two different markets, below $1 million, HOT, and above $1 million, COLD. The below $1 million market accounts for 77% of the total active inventory and 94% of demand. The lower the range, the hotter the market...
Orange County Housing Report: April 1, 2010
Orange County Housing Demand is Picking Up Steam: Call it a coincidence, but with the wet weather turning to sunshine, demand has dramatically increased. Demand, the number of new pending sales over the prior month, increased by 352 homes over the prior two weeks and now totals 3,622, an 11% increase. Demand has not been this high since the beginning of July, 2009. Demand is 375 pending sales stronger than last year at this time and 1,337 stronger than two years ago...
Orange County Housing Report: Mar. 18, 2010
Demand is Increasing: With the return of Southern California sunshine and temperatures in the 70's, Orange County demand is increasing. Demand, the number of new pending sales over the prior month, increased by 216 homes over the prior two weeks and now totals 3,270, the highest level thus far in 2010. Demand is 600 pending sales stronger than last year at this time and 1,187 stronger than two years ago...
Orange County Housing Report: Mar. 4, 2010
Steady As We Go: Typically we see a pause in Orange County housing demand at this time of year. Demand, the number of new pending sales over the prior month, has declined by 190 homes over the prior two weeks, now totaling 3,054. However, this is a cyclical anomaly in the data because February is such a short month. Had February been a normal month in length, demand would have remained unchanged from a couple of weeks ago...
Orange County Housing Report: Feb. 18, 2010
Short Sales Clog the System: Short sales, the sale of homes for less than what is owed on their mortgage, are creating a backlog of pending sales that take FOREVER to close. 2010 is going to be the year of the short sale. Because of the enormous number of foreclosures in 2008, in 2009 the Federal government stepped in and attempted to strong arm big lenders to modify loans. For the most part this was not very successful...
Orange County Housing Report: Feb. 4, 2010
The Housing Market Accelerates: The Super Bowl typically marks the beginning of Orange County's spring real estate market, and this year is proving to be no exception. Demand, the number of new pending sales over the prior month, has increased by 28% over the past two weeks to 3,248, adding 701 additional pending sales. Over the past month, demand has increased by 43%. There are 577 additional pending sales compared to last year and 1,680 compared to two years ago. Last year demand did not reach current levels until April. This is the strongest demand at the beginning of the year since 2005...
Orange County Housing Report: Jan. 21, 2010
The Market Continues to Heat Up! Contrary to the norm, the recent rains have not dampened the Orange County housing Market. This year's early growth in inventory and demand is not just an Orange County phenomenon, but rather Southern California phenomena. There are many skeptics and naysayers who believe that the hot market is temporary and totally propped up by the government. Many point to the tax credit, or the low interest rates to explain the current hot demand. Others point to the "shadow inventory" of foreclosed properties that lurks around the corner to destroy demand...
Orange County Housing Report: Jan. 7, 2010
The Best Start in Years: This is the best start to a New Year for the Orange County housing market in years. Low interest rates, tax credits, increased home affordability, increased conventional loan limit, U.S. Treasury purchases of paper, and Federal Housing Administration loans have all had a positive influence on the housing market...
Orange County Housing Report: Dec. 28, 2009
Happy New Year - A 2010 Forecast: What does the New Year mean for Orange County real estate? Generally, forecasting draws from historical data and circumstances to predict the future. However, recent data and circumstances defy normal trends making forecasting the housing market more of an art than an exact science. There have already been many wildly varying forecasts released. With this in mind, let's first take a look back at what happened in 2009 in terms of inventory, demand, expected market time and distressed properties...
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