I just found this today and it’s a great article breaking down the home prices and the supply in different areas in California. You can see where things are picking up and where its still slow moving. Hope this helps you! Don’t forget you can look at homes for sale through my website- www.deannaforhomes.com

C.A.R. reports sales increased 18.1 percent; median home price fell 35.3 percent in May

LOS ANGELES (June 25) – Home sales increased 18.1 percent in May in California compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing home fell 35.3 percent, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported today.

“Home sales exceeded 400,000 last month for the first time since early 2007. While this is a welcome sign for the market, it was due in part to the large share of distressed homes for sale in many parts of the state,” said C.A.R. President William E. Brown. “Sales also rose above their year ago levels for the second month in a row after 30 consecutive months of year-to-year decreases. The lower prices associated with distressed sales along with favorable interest rates both contributed to higher sales levels.”

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled 423,700 in May 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 increased 18.1 percent from the revised 358,640 sales pace recorded in May 2007.

The statewide sales figure represents what the total number of homes sold during 2008 would be if sales maintained the May 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 May 2008 was $384,840, a 35.3 percent decrease from the revised $594,530 median for May 2007, C.A.R. reported. The May 2008 median price fell 4.7 percent compared with April’s $403,870 median price.

“The statewide median price declined 35.3 percent to $384,840 in May, a record for year-to-year percentage decreases in the median, reflecting the effect of large numbers of short sales and foreclosures in the market,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “With the statewide median in the $585,000- to $595,000-range through August of last year, we expect the market to continue to experience large year-to-year adjustments through the summer, even if the median price holds steady over the next few months.”

Highlights of C.A.R.’s resale housing figures for May 2008:

. C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index for existing, single-family detached homes in May 2008 was 8.4 months, compared with 10.7 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 6.04 percent during May 2008, compared with 6.26 percent in May 2007, according to Freddie Mac. Adjustable-mortgage interest rates averaged 5.24 percent in May 2008, compared with 5.52 percent in May 2007.

. The median number of days it took to sell a single-family home was 49.7 days in May 2008, compared with 50.8 for the same period a year ago.

Regional MLS sales and price information is contained in the tables that accompany this press release. Regional sales data are not adjusted to account for seasonal factors that can influence home sales. The MLS median price and sales data for detached homes are generated from a survey of more than 90 associations of REALTORS® throughout the state. MLS median price and sales data for condominiums are based on a survey of more than 60 associations. The median price for both detached homes and condominiums represents closed escrow sales.

In a separate report covering more localized statistics generated by C.A.R. and DataQuick Information Systems, 4.1 percent, or 15 out of 369 cities and communities, showed an increase in their respective median home prices from a year ago. DataQuick statistics are based on county records data rather than MLS information. DataQuick Information Systems is a subsidiary of Vancouver-based MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates. (The top 10 lists are generated for incorporated cities with a minimum of 30 recorded sales in the month.)

Note: Large changes in local median home prices typically indicate both local home price appreciation, and often, large shifts in the composition of housing market activity. Some of the variations in median home prices for May may be exaggerated due to compositional changes in housing demand. The DataQuick tables listing median home prices in California cities and counties are accessible through C.A.R. Online at http://www.car.org/index.php?id=Mzg1Mjg.

. Statewide, the 10 cities with the highest median home prices in California during May 2008 were: Los Altos, $1,710,000; Burlingame, $1,700,500; Saratoga, $1,506,500; Mill Valley, $1,475,000; Los Gatos, $1,350,000; Newport Beach, $1,250,000; Cupertino, $1,172,500; Santa Barbara, $1,066,000; Rancho Palos Verdes, $950,000; San Carlos, $900,000.

. Statewide, the 10 cities with the greatest median home price increases in May 2008 compared with the same period a year ago were: Sonoma, 61 percent; Cupertino, 16.7 percent; Mill Valley, 14.6 percent; Los Gatos, 10.2 percent; Sunnyvale, 4.7 percent; Fullerton, 3 percent; Burlingame, 2.1 percent; Santa Barbara, 2 percent; Los Altos, 1.8 percent; Folsom, 0.5 percent.

Leading the way…® in California real estate for more than 100 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States, with nearly 175,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.

May 2008 Regional Sales and Price Activity*
Regional and Condo Sales Data Not Seasonally Adjusted

na – not available

*Based on closed escrow sales of single‑family, detached homes only (no condos).  Reported month‑to‑month changes in sales activity in May overstate actual changes because of the small size of individual regional samples. Movements in sales prices should not be interpreted as measuring changes in the cost of a standard home.  Prices are influenced by changes in cost and changes in the characteristics and size of homes actually sold.

sf = single‑family, detached home

Source:  CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® 

Median Prices By Region – Current Month vs. Year Ago

na – not available

r – revised

Source: CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

This is really good news- it does show things are moving in the right direction just not at lighting speed which is a great time for people to buy homes especially bank owned homes (REO homes)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The pace of existing home sales rose in May to a 4.99 million-unit annual rate, the National Association of Realtors said in a report on Thursday that slightly beat analyst expectations.

Economists polled by Reuters were expecting home resales to rise to a 4.93 million-unit pace, from the 4.89 rate initially reported for May.

The inventory of homes for sale shrank by 1.4 percent to 4.49 million homes, or a 10.8 months’ supply at the current sales pace. Meanwhile, the median national home price declined 6.3 percent from a year ago to $208,600.

U.S. Treasury debt slightly pared gains after the data’s release.

The data came one day after a report that showed sales of newly built single-family homes fell 2.5 percent in May to an annual rate of 512,000 units, which was slightly ahead of expectations but was down more than 40 percent from a year ago.

The housing market has been shaken for months by a credit crunch and a wave of failing home loans that have spooked lenders and prospective buyers.

The disappointing new homes data is nonetheless in line with the pace of the last eight months, which have seen sales hover around the 5 million level, said Paul Bishop, a senior economist with the National Association of Realtors.

“Sales remain fairly flat at the 5 million mark,” he said.

(Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

 Foreclosure stigma haunts would-be renters
By J.W. Elphinstone, AP Business Writer

Former homeowners with foreclosure past find apartment owners wary of their credit reports

As if losing a house on the court steps wasn’t enough, some former homeowners may find themselves turned away by apartment owners spooked by the foreclosure history on their credit reports.

One Virginia couple ended up living in a hotel after their foreclosure, according to Trish Lynch, a trainer and former credit counselor at ClearPoint Financial Solutions, who worked with them.

“No one would rent to them. And the hotel is costing them $3,000 a month to stay there,” she said.

Lynch recommended they try to rent from a private owner or individual who might be more lenient on credit checks, but who could also ask for higher rents to cover their risk. So far, the couple’s still stuck at the hotel.

As foreclosures rise across the country and skyrocket in economically depressed areas and once-hot housing markets, more apartment owners are seeing an increase in the number of rental applicants with blemished mortgage histories. That includes foreclosures, short sales — when a house is sold for less than the amount owed on the mortgage — and deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, when a homeowner gives up a house to the lender to end the foreclosure process.

Many of these would-be renters flood the so-called shadow market of investor-owned homes and condos, which make up almost half of the rental stock and are not tracked by the apartment industry. But some former homeowners are making their way to the traditional rental market, causing concern for some landlords.

When Jane Garvey, president of the Illinois Rental Property Owners Association, informally surveyed the 500 members of her association, the landlords expressed some discomfort with renting to people with foreclosure issues.

“They need to know they’re going to get paid,” she said. “As a group, people seemed more reluctant to accept people going through a short sale. They look at it as signing a contract but not going through with it.”

Some in the apartment industry have been trying to slice and dice the applicant pool to identify who could make good renters and add to occupancy levels and the rental base, said Mark Fogelman, president of Memphis, Tenn.-based Fogelman Management Group, which owns and manages 18,000 rental units in the Southeast, Midwest and Southwest.

“For us, that’s too subjective and sets a risky proposition,” he said. “We have not successfully been able to accept many applicants with defaulting mortgages primarily because they tend to have other credit issues.”

Between 5 percent and 7 percent of rental applicants are 90 days or more past due on a mortgage or in foreclosure, said Jay Harris, vice president of business services at renter screening company First Advantage SafeRent Inc. About two-thirds of those with a tarnished mortgage history qualify to rent.

The remaining third usually have other credit problems such as overextension on existing credit lines, public records related to collections, among others.

A study last year by Lakewood, Colo.-based First Advantage found applicants with a foreclosure had more than four times as many lines of credit over 90 days delinquent compared to applicants without a foreclosure. They also had three times more open or closed unpaid credit lines.

“These are not the same people who left to buy a home,” Nevel DeHart, First Advantage’s executive vice president, wrote in an article presenting the survey results. “They return to the rental market with significantly increased risk exposure associated with their ability to pay future rental obligations.”

And unlike in a bankruptcy, he noted, a consumer still has to pay credit card and other debt obligations after a foreclosure, short sale or deed-in-lieu, which could further compromise their financial stability.

Some landlords may conditionally accept renters with foreclosures in their past. They may ask for an extra month’s rent up front, a larger security deposit or a co-signer.

Donn Schaefer, president of the Metro East Landlords Association in Collinsville, Ill., is specifically seeking out displaced homeowners for his rentals. His company, Homesellers Solutions Inc., buys, sells and rents single-family homes and duplexes.

“Bad things happen to good people all the time. They need to have a place to live and sometimes people learn from their mistakes,” he said.

“They make great tenants too,” he continued. “They know about pride of ownership. They know about taking care of a house.”

To ensure that they have shelter after a possible foreclosure, Lynch advises her clients to prepare for the worst.

Some lenders and loan servicers are offering money to struggling homeowners for their properties, dubbed a cash-for-keys exchange, to avoid the foreclosure process. Lynch recommends some homeowners use the cash toward a security deposit at a rental.

Lynch also suggests that homeowners who are facing foreclosure start looking for a rental before the foreclosure process is completed — since lenders can’t report foreclosures to credit reporting bureaus until the procedure is finished.

“You want to look for the rental before the foreclosure hits your credit report,” she said. “Because after that, it becomes much harder to find a rental.”

Lathrop is GROWING again!!

Here we go!!!

Ghiradelli Chocolate Factoryhas an Outlet in Lathrop

and will be opening up its Ice cream Parlor with in the next week or so

In Shape will be opening up a Phase 1 gym and

Little Caesars will be opening up by Save Mart Shopping Center

TARGET will be opening up July 27^th, 2008

There will also be 13 other retailers in the Target Shopping Center.

*Fingers Crossed – Home Depot in 18 months- 2 years

 

 

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This was a really interesting article that I found in the home buying process right now people think that they can offer way below price. In the Central Valley California more so Lathrop, Manteca, and Tracy it’s becoming a fine line that you need to walk in which how you put your offers in. We are in a multiple offer situation. Talk to your Realtor or you can go to my website www.deannaforhomes.com and you can contact me and pull up some comparable homes that are for sale, pending, and have sold in the past 3 months in the same area. Then you can get the clear picture of how your market is doing.

Real Estate Bargaining: an Expert Opinion
By Luke Mullins

With the sluggish real estate market making home sellers increasingly desperate, the table is set for buyers to negotiate their way to hefty savings. But what are the do’s and don’ts of negotiating home prices? Daniel Shapiro, associate director of the Harvard Negotiation Project and coauthor of Beyond Reason: Using Emotions as You Negotiate, spoke with U.S. News about his advice to consumers. Excerpts:

How can consumers put themselves in a better position to negotiate down the price of a home? Know what the comparative analysis is; how long a house has been on the market is a great indicator of its attractiveness and how much you might be able to get off of the price. It’s an important thing to know because in some areas prices are declining 10 to 20 percent. At the same time, in the locations such as where I am living, in Arlington, Mass., [the market has] held pretty steady. Whatever area you are considering moving to, get their stats.

What should consumers know about making a low offer? Don’t try to steal the home. If you give an offer that is insultingly low, the buyer may not think you are trustworthy or maybe for emotional reasons not want to give it to you. [A seller might think], “I like this house. I’m not going to give it to you for $1. It’s worth much more than $1.” In today’s market, you can negotiate, in many cases, the price down. My advice would be to find a price that within the market is a fair price. This is the price that is going to be most persuasive to everyone: to the agents on both sides, to the buyer, and to the seller.

How important are emotions in the home-buying process? I do believe that emotions are such a critical element in dealing with real estate. People think it’s just about numbers, when this is actually very much a human transaction. At the end of the day, I have lived in my house for 30 years, and I don’t want just anyone to buy it. I’d rather sacrifice a substantial amount of money to have that really nice family move in and appreciate this house where I have raised my kids. And I don’t think that’s uncommon. I think it’s crucial to recognize that. Money is a piece of it–it’s an important piece–but it’s not the only thing. They want their emotions addressed [as well].

What should home buyers using an agent know about the process? It’s important, when you are working with an agent, to understand that an agent does have an interest in the house being bought for more money because they will make a higher commission. And you, as the buyer, have an interest in buying the house for the best possible price.

Are consumers more likely to get a better deal through an agent or on their own? There are pros and cons in terms of negotiating [directly] with the seller. On the one hand, it can be helpful to build that rapport with the seller. You can ask questions that are sometimes hard to ask through intermediaries. If you do meet directly with the owner, remember that most of the time, people are very attached to their homes. So if you walk in and think that your negotiation strategy is going to be to criticize elements of the home and show all of the problems so that you can get a reduced price, you might just have lost the rapport with the seller. Emotions are very tangible when you’re face to face, and I think that’s often a benefit of an agent. I think it’s very helpful to actually get your agent on your side because this agent is dealing in the market; they know what the market values are much better than almost anyone. And so to get their advice on what they think an appropriate range for the house might be and even on negotiation strategy could be useful.

What’s a potential pitfall homebuyers face in negotiating? People often get so enmeshed in the negotiation game that they lose the house they like and could afford because they didn’t get the negotiation price they thought they could get. That’s a big problem, and I could see that being particularly sensitive given today’s market.

Love this article!! Its great! Hits the nail on the head! When looking on line.  I personally believe that you should look through many resources when trying to find that ideal home. I have a website that you can search homes for sale and bank owned homes. www.deannaforhomes.com

Six Secrets of Internet Home Buying
By Luke Mullins

With the worst housing slump in a generation slashing home prices across the country, the dynamics of the market have shifted squarely in favor of buyers. And as the real estate industry grows increasingly Web-savvy, house hunters can now scour through neighborhoods, inspect front porches, and even peek inside bedrooms from the comfort of their desktops. But while this surge of new information can help you find that perfect home, it can also–at times–make the whole process overwhelming. Here are six ways to ensure that your online real estate search is as efficient and effective as possible.

1. Know when to say when. There are plenty of ways to waste time on the Internet. When it comes to home buying, searching through properties you admire–but can’t afford–tops the list. So before you grab for that mouse, contact a lender and get preapproved for a mortgage. That way you’ll know exactly what you can afford. “It’s not difficult,” says Elizabeth Deal, senior vice president of ICBA Mortgage, a subsidiary of the trade group Independent Community Bankers of America. After contacting a lender, prospective home buyers will typically be asked to provide information about their income and debts, Deal says. (In some cases, lenders will want to see a credit report as well.) From that information, the lender will be able to issue a letter outlining the price range that the buyer can afford. The whole process can take as little as a half-hour, Deal says.

2. Find the right tools… Real estate search engines are getting better and better. Pat Kitano, a cofounder of Domus Consulting Group, which works with real estate brokerage firms on technology marketing strategies, calls Trulia.com “the most complete national site.” Kitano also recommends DotHomes. Jay Thompson, of Thompson’s Realty in Arizona, suggests using Zillow.com or Realtor.com, the official site of the National Association of Realtors. Realtor.com “has probably the most listings of any national site,” Thompson says. “Just about anything that is on a local [multiple listing service] will be on realtor.com.” But rather than limit your search to national search engines, Thompson says, it’s a good idea to visit the Web sites of real estate agents and brokers in the market that you are considering as well.

3. …and put them in a belt. Instead of trying to pinpoint the one “best” search engine, home buyers should put together a list of resources and use them in tandem. After all, no single search engine can provide a complete picture of the entire housing market. But by using several as a group, prospective home buyers can get a much better look at the inventory. “A consumer has to go to multiple sites to figure out the whole landscape,” Kitano says

4. Don’t forget the indies. The majority of Internet search tools enable users to look through homes that are being sold through agents. But if you use those exclusively, you will miss the sizable chunk of homes being sold independently. “Agents list about 77 to 78 percent of the homes on the market, so there is another 22 to 23 percent of homes that 10 to 15 years ago people wouldn’t be able to find,” says Greg Healy, vice president of operations at ForSaleByOwner.com, which markets the homes of sellers who are looking to cut out the agent and save on commission. “Using sites that are not agent-related is really critical.”

Joshua Dorkin, the founder and CEO of BiggerPockets.com, a real estate networking and information site, says that Craigslist is a great way to find non-agent-affiliated listings that might not show up on mainstream real estate search engines. “It’s the classified powerhouse of the world now,” Dorkin says.

5. Be alert. Some online real estate resources now offer e-mail alerts or RSS feeds that provide instant notification of new listings and other information of interest to prospective home buyers. Sign up! This is a great way to stay on top of the changing real estate market as your home search progresses. “Rather than actually pulling the information from a particular source, you want that information pushed to you,” says Douglas de Jager, cofounder of DotHomes. “It saves you time.”

6. Find a good blog. Few resources allow home buyers to take the pulse of the national and local markets like real estate blogs. “Real estate bloggers know in real time what is going on in the market,” Kitano says. Like anything else on the Internet, some blogs are better than others. Shop around. Use your favorite search engine to find a couple of blogs that cover real estate in the markets you are interested in, bookmark them and click through them every day. (Pay special attention to the blogs with the most comments and postings.) By and large, the real estate blogging community understands the dynamics of today’s housing market in the way few others do. They’ve emerged as an important voice on housing issues and a wonderful resource for prospective home buyers.

Some great buyer information! This author Amanda Gengler makes some great points about buying bank owned homes and mortgage rates. You can’t just look at the price of the home you have to look at the rates and the location.

Money
New rules of home buying
 By Amanda Gengler, Money Magazine

There’s no telling how long the housing crisis will drag on. Here’s what you need to know before you start shopping in a rocky market.

Rule 1: You can’t time the bottom

Face it: The house you buy today will more than likely be worth less next year. That could get you thinking about trying to time the bottom. Resist. It’s harder to do than you think, and this is the best buyers have had it in two decades, with inventories up and mortgage rates low.

Pace yourself, find the perfect place and drive a hard bargain: Ignore the seller’s asking price and bid 10% below what comparable homes are selling for. If the seller balks, move on. Remember that if you’re trading up, your home could sit. So sell before you buy.

Rule 2: One reason to buy now – mortgage rates

Homes are plentiful and will remain so, but financing will be getting more expensive. True, the Federal Reserve has slashed interest rates, but fixed mortgages don’t directly follow the Fed. They reflect the bond market’s expectations about inflation, which remains a concern. The 30-year, now at 6.1%, will likely reach mid-6% by December and 7% in 2009, says Celia Chen of Moody’s Economy.com.

That means there could be a penalty for waiting to buy even if prices fall more. Today a $250,000 loan would set you back $1,500 a month. At 7%, a $1,500 payment gets you only a $225,000 mortgage. As for variable-rate loans, the spread between conforming ARMs and fixed loans is too narrow to do you much good.

Rule 3: Another reason to buy – rates on big mortgages

Mortgages in amounts greater than $417,000 – the limit for buying by federally sponsored mortgage agencies – usually run a fifth of a percentage point above conventional products. But investors are shunning jumbos, which now average 7.2% and are unlikely to drop much this year, according to HSH Associates.

Certain jumbo borrowers could get relief, however. A new law allows Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to buy loans as large as $729,750 in 71 high-priced areas. So far “jumbo conforming” loans average 6.6%. The program has gotten off to a slow start; you’ll need to shop around. And unless Congress acts, this bargain will disappear at year-end.

Rule 4: Don’t buy cheap; buy good schools

By now you’ve heard from somebody who knows somebody who got a great deal on a foreclosed property. But when you buy a house, you’re also buying into a neighborhood. And foreclosures tend to be bunched in areas where residents and speculators alike took out exotic mortgages to get into homes they subsequently found they couldn’t afford. That’s not a recipe for stability. Prices and quality of life could both decline further.

Similarly, avoid developments that popped up in the past few years. They too likely have a lot of owners with risky loans and little equity, says Mike Larson of Weiss Research. Instead, go for areas with highly rated schools. They generally fare better during downturns, and that pattern is holding today, according to a recent study by real estate site Trulia.com.

Rule 5: Make sure your agent has your interest at heart

The real estate game has a built-in conflict of interest, since the listing agent and your agent both get paid by the seller. And these days more sellers are offering extra cash to buyer’s agents.

So make sure you’re not being steered to a house that’s better for your agent than for you. Agree up front on his commission (typically 3%) and that any extra payments will go to you, says Jon Boyd, past president of a buyer’s agent trade group.

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This is a great article- showing that the home sales are going up and the prices still low! This is great for first time home buyers as well as investors or people looking to buy a 2nd home. Although foreclosures are still happening the homes are coming up for sale in a steady stream than a huge wave and it is keeping the market level.

Have coffee with the Mayor Kristy Sayles

Wednesday June 11^th from 8:30-9:30 am

Best Western Plaza Inn & Suites

15688 S. Harland Rd., Lathrop CA 95330

Residents are encouraged to attend!!

Kristy Sayles talks on a variety of subjects pertaining to the City’s future plans and what we can improve. There is also a Q&A Session and you can voice your opinion or ask a question!

Coffee and Information are free!

Come and join the city of Lathrop in

Celebrating its 19^th Birthday!

Tuesday July 1st from 5-10pm

Being held at the NEW Mossdale Community Park.

17400 Golden Spike Trail Lathrop, CA 95330

There will be

 Hot Dogs * Soda* Watermelon* Entertainment* Birthday Cake

FIREWORKS