Account Open Stream California
California (188)
San Fernando Valley home sales surge, prices rise
Posted by: Juliet Hardy Tuesday, 15 January 2013 09:49 | 0 commentsThe San Fernando Valley's
housing market roared to life in October, with sales surging 25 percent
from a year ago and the median price increasing 10 percent.
It looks like the rebound has morphed into more than a mirage, too.
Since April, sales have increased by more than 10 percent from
a year earlier every month except September, according to the San
Fernando Valley Economic Research Center at California State Univeristy,
Northridge.
Last month, 1,510 new and previously owned houses and
condominiums changed owners, an increase of 305 from October 2011 and
223 more than in October 2012.
Economist William W. Roberts, the center's director, said that
September was an anomaly and that the 2012 market should end on a
strong note.
"I think we'll see decent numbers in November and December,"
Roberts said. "Twelve months ago the market was a bit artificial because
the government stimulus had stopped and the market wasn't going much of
anywhere. Now it's more of a traditional market."
Ventura County foreclosure filings hit 5-year low
Posted by: Juliet Hardy Monday, 17 December 2012 09:46 | 0 commentsVentura County Star
By Stephanie Hoops
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Total foreclosure filings last month reached a low not seen in five years, with a 53.6 percent drop countywide compared with the same month a year ago, according to a mortgage research company.
A total of 671 foreclosure filings — default notices, auctions and bank repossessions — was reported last month in Ventura County, compared with 1,445 in November 2011, Irvine-based RealtyTrac Inc. reports.
The last time November filings were lower was in 2007, when there were 426 filings.
November's filings fell from 738 in October, a 9 percent decrease. Local foreclosure filings have been declining since June, but foreclosure filings in May hit the year's bottom at 640.
"Foreclosures are at very low levels relative to the stock of housing in Ventura County, which is certainly among the better-performing counties of the state," said Robert Kleinhenz, chief economist at the Los Angeles County Development Corp.
Southern California posts most November home sales since 2006
Posted by: Open Door Institute Wednesday, 12 December 2012 14:13 | 0 commentsBy E. Scott Reckard
December 12, 2012, 10:34 a.m.
Southern California's housing market surged again last month, with the number of homes sold climbing more than 14% from a year earlier to their the highest level for any November in six years.
It was the 11th straight month of year-over-year increases, according to real estate research firm DataQuick. The median home price for the region was $321,000, up from $315,000 the two prior months and a nearly 17% increase over $275,000 in November of 2011.
Helping to boost the median home price, the number of sales rose in the trade-up middle ranges of the market and at the high end, while sales volume fell in less expensive areas.
Investors paying cash for homes remain an unusually large part of the regional housing market, DataQuick said.
More buyers feel confident about their jobs, the economy and housing prices, said John Walsh, president of the San Diego data firm.
“We’re also seeing more non-distressed sales, where people sell at a profit and buy another house, triggering more move-up activity,” Walsh said.
County housing rebound continues
Posted by: Juliet Hardy Thursday, 29 November 2012 16:51 | 0 commentsVentura County's housing picture brightened more last week, with reports of increased sales and prices and fewer foreclosure filings.
October home sales jumped 35 percent from the same time last year and the median price climbed to $360,000, San Diego-based DataQuick reported Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the number of properties with foreclosure filings dropped 39 percent in October from the same time last year, according to Irvine-based RealtyTrac. There were 738 county properties with foreclosure filings in October. Of those, 217 were default notices, 367 were auction sales and 154 were bank repossessions.
Buffett’s New Real Estate Brand to Irvine
Posted by: Open Door Institute Wednesday, 31 October 2012 10:59 | 0 comments Jerry Sullivan Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Warren Buffett will attach the name of his famed holding company to a newly formed residential real estate chain that will have headquarters in Irvine.
The company is expected to take shape under terms of a deal between HomeServices of America and Brookfield Asset Management in Toronto.
HomeServices is an affiliate of Buffett’s Omaha-based Berkshire Hathaway holding company. It has headquarters in Minneapolis, and operates numerous real estate offices under various brands throughout the nation.
Bookfield owns Irvine-based Prudential Real Estate as well as Real Living Real Estate chain, with headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. Prudential and Real Living combined for about $72 billion in sales last year.
REAL ESTATE: Industry event explores eminent domain
Posted by: Open Door Institute Friday, 05 October 2012 13:05 | 0 commentsThe California Association of Realtors, as part of its 2012 EXPO at Anaheim Convention Center, held a public policy forum on proposed use by government to use eminent domain to seize underwater home mortgages.
San Bernardino County has created a joint powers authority to explore a proposal to hire a private venture to wrest privately-held mortgages out of investment pools, so homeowners who owe more on their property than it’s worth can refinance or modify their loans.
The closed-door forum, held Wednesday, Oct. 3, included Steven Gluckstern, chief executive of Mortgage Resolution Partners, which has proposed the concept, and Richard Dorfman, managing director of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.
The private discussion, attended by more than 400 real estate professionals, lasted more than one hour.
Paul Herrera, government affairs director with the Inland Valleys Association of Realtors, said it’s possible the board of directors will vote to adopt an association position on eminent domain at the conclusion of the conference, Friday, Oct. 5, or Saturday.
Fannie Mae: Despite It All, Americans Want to Buy, Not Rent
Posted by: Juliet Hardy Thursday, 04 October 2012 13:28 | 0 commentsDaily News Los Angeles
Written by: Brian O'Connell 10/02/12 - 11:22 AM EDT
NEW YORK (BankingMyWay) -- Despite barrels of ink spilled over the imminent tsunami in apartment rentals, Americans still want to own their own homes, and they have a lot to say about the new-look U.S. housing market.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 65.5% of adult Americans own their own home, a number that really hasn't wavered over the past year.
With housing prices historically soft and mortgage credit hard to get, the conventional wisdom has it that U.S. adults have had it with the housing market and are looking to rent rather than own their own abode.
As Census data show, that conventional wisdom is wrong. In fact, not only do U.S. consumers continue to pursue the American Dream, just over a quarter of them -- 28% to be exact -- prefer to rent versus own their own home, according to a separate survey of 1,000 U.S. adults from Fannie Mae.
California real estate market is stranger than it's ever been
Posted by: Open Door Institute Wednesday, 03 October 2012 12:22 | 0 commentsThat's the takeaway from today's California Association of Realtors Housing Market Forecast for 2013. CAR Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young presented the data, and the date is...basically unprecedented. Appleton-Young said that she's never seen a market quite like it.
However, she doesn't think that the market is distorted. You could be excused for thinking that it is. For starters, according the the CAR, prices in California fell almost 60 percent from their bubble highs before the financial crisis. But at the moment, several factors are intersecting. There's not enough supply to meet housing demand in the state. Combined with historically low interest rates, this is pushing up prices. And investors snapping up properties they consider to be historically underpriced are sweeping into the market, using all-cash offers to gobble up homes.
This last factor is keeping first-time buyers from getting into the market. It isn't helping that banks are engaged in what Appleton-Young characterizes as "defensive" lending. Burned by the crisis, they want to make load to high-quality borrowers who have big down payments. It's all about risk for the banks: their ultimate objective is to sell their loans to investors, and the last thing they want is to deal with default risks down the road and be forced to take back the loan.
Realtors see 1.3% sales gain in 2013
Posted by: Open Door Institute Wednesday, 03 October 2012 08:59 | 0 commentsBY DEBRA GRUSZECKI
California’s housing market will continue to recover in 2013, with home sales forecast to grow 1.3 percent, the California Association of Realtors said.
The projections, released Tuesday, Oct. 2, reflect what would be the third consecutive year of slow but steady gains for the state’s real estate industry.
Record-low interest rates and favorable home prices are expected to push home sales up 5.1 percent in 2012 — from the 497,900 existing, single-family homes sold in 2011 — to 523,300.
Southern California posts strong August home sales
Posted by: Juliet Hardy Friday, 14 September 2012 14:30 | 0 commentsBy Stephanie Hoops
Originally published 10:38 a.m., September 13, 2012
Updated 05:08 p.m., September 13, 2012
Southern California homes sales in August were the strongest they've been all year, and the median price rose nearly 11 percent.
Home sales increased 14.2 percent from the same month last year to total 22,438 sold in August, real estate firm DataQuick reported Thursday.
Median prices for new and existing houses and condos in Ventura, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange counties were up 10.8 percent from a year ago, to $309,000.
"August was the strongest month for home sales so far this year and the strongest for an August in six years," DataQuick President John Walsh said.
Recent Open Stream Articles
Meijer to hire 400 for its Detroit store
Unemployment Rates Continue to Shock Doom-and-Gloomers
Michigan can't collect real estate transfer taxes from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
Report: Foreclosures Led to Loss of $192B in Wealth in 2012
U.S. housing starts fell in April but permits surged
Open Stream Top Contributors
Newsletters
Follow Us
