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Riverside foreclosure news

OB QR270 Hagert E 20111121115301 San Diego Housing Inventories dropped drastically

San Diego inventories of properties dropped significantly. The previous average number of active homes in all of San Diego County real estate MLS (multiple listing service) was 11,000 to 12,000 since 2007. The current number of active homes in all of San Diego County just dropped from Dec. 2011 9,161 to 7,879.

Typically as the inventories in San Diego decrease below 8,000 the market goes from a buyers market to a sellers market. The national market trend has a similar trend. Good deals in this market can also mean multiple offers.

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Foreclosure starts across the West Coast plummeted in December as California, Nevada and Washington reported double-digit declines in new mortgages entering the process, according to ForeclosureRadar.

California, in particular, saw foreclosure starts decline by 30.6% to 16,465 filings in December, while foreclosure sales grew 3.2% to 11,097 transactions. The time it takes to foreclose in the Golden State also fell by 16.9% to 250 days.

The Discovery Bay, Calif.-based firm said California experienced an unexpected 45.8% spike in foreclosure cancellations from November.

ForeclosureRadar said the sudden rise stems from the closing of trustee sale locations in Norwalk, Calif.

“This closure caused more than 5,000 sales to be cancelled in December,” the company said. Those sales are expected to resume at other trustee locations in California.

Year-end foreclosure statistics

Banks filed foreclosures on roughly 205,000 homes in December, the lowest monthly total since November 2007, according to RealtyTrac, which said the 1.8 million foreclosures for 2011 dropped nearly 35% from 2010. Media outlets around the nation are reporting the new numbers from RealtyTrac that apply to their cities and states.Unexpected delays — including robo-signing issues that first arose in late 2010 — kept 2011 numbers lower than expected. One in 16 Nevada homes received a foreclosure filing in 2011. It’s still the highest foreclosure rate in the country despite dropping 31% from the year before.

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 shutterstock 76613260 Has Real Estate values decline to the bottom?U.S. home values continued to fall in October, but at a rate that has stabilized as the market heads toward a bottom, according to a report from property valuation site Zillow.

Nationally, home values dipped 0.3 percent in October from September, and declined 5.1 percent from October 2010, to $147,900.

“The rate of monthly depreciation has stabilized around -0.2 percent to -0.3 percent over the last few months, an improvement compared to the fall of last year, when rates reached more than 0.8 percent monthly depreciation,” the report said.

Home values have declined 23.7 percent from a May 2007 peak. Zillow said it expects home values to drop another 2 to 4 percent before reaching a bottom in 2012.

“Continued home-value depreciation is a reflection of an abundance of housing supply relative to continued anemic demand despite record high housing affordability and historically low mortgage rates. Low consumer confidence and fears of further price declines continue to contribute to a crisis of confidence among potential buyers,” the report said.

“However, I’m encouraged by the positive, albeit slow, progress in working down the unemployment rate, which should help to improve consumers’ appetites for buying homes,” added Stan Humphries, Zillow’s chief economist, in a statement.

zillowhomevalueindexpeak121211 Has Real Estate values decline to the bottom? 

Of the 156 metropolitan areas tracked by Zillow, 61 percent saw home values decline on a monthly basis; a quarter saw monthly increases; and 14 percent remained flat. Only 6 percent (10 metros) saw home values increase on an annual basis. Seven of those metros also experienced monthly appreciation: Fort Collins, Colo.; Honolulu; Madison, Wis.; Lincoln, Neb.; Oklahoma City; Fort Myers, Fla.; and Tulsa, Okla.

Of the 25 largest metro areas, all except Pittsburgh saw year-over-year decreases. Atlanta posted the biggest drop, down 14.7 percent, followed by Tampa, Fla., down 10.7 percent. Pittsburgh saw home values appreciate a slight 0.4 percent year over year.

Only four of the 25 largest metros saw monthly appreciation: Detroit; Phoenix; San Diego, Calif.; and Pittsburgh. Detroit posted the highest increase, up 1 percent. Of the remaining metros, St. Louis posted the largest monthly drop, falling 1.9 percent, followed by Atlanta, down 1.4 percent.

Largest 25 metros
covered by Zillow
Zillow Home
Value Index
 
Oct.
2011
Mo.-
to-
mo.
ch.
Yr.-
over-
yr. ch.
Ch.
from
peak
Homes
fore-
closed
(out of
every
10K
homes)
Fore-
clos-
ure
re-
sales
U.S. $147,900 -0.3% -5.1% -23.7% 8.1 19.4%
New York $342,500 0.5% -4.4% -24.3% 0.4 2.6%
Los Angeles $382,700 -0.5% -7.4% -37.9% 11.5 27.2%
Chicago $163,600 -1.1% -10.4% -34.3% –  – 
Dallas $120,600 -1.2% -4.9% -16% 8.3 19.9%
Philadelphia $188,400 -0.5% -4.6% -18.1% 2.5 7.4%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla. $136,800 -0.1% -4.9% -55.4% –  – 
Washington, D.C. $301,400 -0.2% -1.9% -29.6% 4.9 15.1%
Atlanta $109,700 -1.4% -14.7% -37.6% –  – 
Detroit $72,900 1% -6.7% -52.9% –  – 
Boston $305,700 -0.6% -2.7% -19.4% –  – 
San Francisco $464,000 -0.3% -6.3% -33.8% 12.5 26%
Phoenix $120,600 0.2% -8.4% -56.9% 24.5 40.9%
Riverside, Calif. $178,100 -0.2% -5.9% -55.7% 22.5 45.1%
Seattle $252,400 -0.2% -9.4% -33.1% 11.5 25.2%
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. $164,000 -0.6% -9.1% -31.5% 10.5 18.9%
San Diego $339,000 0.1% -5.5% -36.5% 11.3 26.6%
St. Louis $121,500 -1.9% -9.1% -21.7% –  – 
Tampa, Fla. $103,900 -0.3% -10.7% -52.5% –  – 
Baltimore $214,600 -0.8% -3.2% -24.2% 3.1 11.3%
Denver $203,500 -0.5% -2.9% -11.8% 10 23.6%
Pittsburgh $106,500 0.1% 0.4% -1% 2.7 8.5%
Portland, Ore. $208,100 -0.4% -6.8% -26.3% 12.2 15.3%
Cleveland $109,800 -0.8% -5.1% -22.6% 9 20.3%
Sacramento, Calif. $201,400 -0.5% -10.4% -52.2% 19.2 39%
Orlando, Fla. $112,600 -0.7% -8.1% -56.4% –  – 

Source: Zillow

Homes were foreclosed on at a rate of 8.1 per 10,000 in October, a decline from an all-time high of 10.7 per 10,000 in October 2010, just before a controversy involving documentation irregularities caused a slowdown in foreclosure proceedings. The share of foreclosure resales in the market was 19.4 percent in October.

“We do expect an increase in the foreclosure liquidation rate either in conjunction with a settlement between major lenders and servicers and various states’ attorneys general or, alternatively, in the aftermath of the settlement effort falling apart.

This will cause the cumulative number of homes in foreclosure status to begin to fall again as these homes become REO (real estate owned), unfortunately putting renewed downward pressure on home values,” the report said.

October’s report includes the addition of 18 million homes to the coverage area of Zillow’s Home Value Index, which previously covered 750 U.S. counties and now covers nearly 3,000.

Many of the homes added are in rural locations, which typically have lower home values, resulting in a lower national Zillow Home Value Index.

For example, September’s national index value fell to $148,400 from $171,500 after the data from the added counties was included. Zillow’s national home-value index is a weighted average of the median home value for each county.

Index values at the metro level were little changed because most homes within major metro areas had previously been covered, the report said.

Data from the added counties has been recomputed into the historical data back to 1996 for the Zillow Home Value Index, “so there is no discontinuity,” the report said.

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Mortgage delinquencies of 60 days or more are forecast to rise through the first quarter of 2012 and then decline to about 5% by the end of 2012, according to TransUnion.

After six consecutive quarterly declines between the fourth quarter of 2009 and the second quarter of 2011, 60-day mortgage delinquencies are expected to peak at 6.02% during the first quarter of 2012 before beginning their decline, the consumer credit reporting agency said.

“Although house prices and unemployment will likely face continued pressure next year, this forecast calls for gradual improvements in the second half of 2012 to other key variables, like improving credit quality of new originations, consumer confidence and GDP, that will positively influence homeowners’ ability and willingness to pay their mortgages,” said Tim Martin, group vice president of U.S. housing for TransUnion.

“If things go as expected, there are no additional negative shocks to the U.S. economy and the average borrower’s situation, mortgage delinquencies could fall as much as 16% in 2012 compared to 2011.”

The expected mortgage delinquency decline in 2012 would follow recent yearly trends, including an expected 7% decrease by the end of this year and a 7% reduction in 2010. This is in contrast to more than 50% year-over-year increases between 2006 and 2009.

TransUnion projects delinquency declines for 38 states with the largest percentage declines forecast for Arizona (-46.25%), Wisconsin (-45.52%) and Colorado (-40.34%). Twelve states and the District of Columbia are expected to see increases.

The agency said credit card delinquency rates for borrowers 90 days or more delinquent on one or more of their credit cards reached their lowest levels in 17 years during the second quarter of 2011 (0.60%). It expects them to remain relatively low in 2012, decreasing approximately 7% from 0.74% in the fourth quarter of 2011 to 0.69% by the end of 2012.

Credit card debt per borrower in the third quarter of 2011 stood at $4,762, approximately $1,000 less than the second quarter of 2009, the quarter in which the recession ended.”

TransUnion’s forecasts are based on various economic assumptions, such as gross state product, consumer sentiment, unemployment rates and real estate values.

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New York City foreclosure filings dropped 32% in the third quarter over last year.

Lenders filed 3,168 foreclosures on single-family and multifamily properties during the quarter, according to a study from New York University Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. The notices, the first stage in the foreclosure process, also dropped 5.4% from the previous three months and were down more than 46% from the peak in 2009.

Roughly 73% of all filings occurred in either Brooklyn or Queens. Over the last two quarters, notices have been more evenly split between homeowners and landlords.

“Given persistent unemployment and delinquency rates nationally, it remains unclear whether the past four quarters of reductions in foreclosure notices is the result of the slow pace of foreclosure proceedings, or a promising sign that more homeowners are now able to meet their mortgage obligations,” said Vicki Been, faculty director of the Furman Center.

Court rule changes and a massive backlog pushed the average completion time to beyond 900 days, the longest in the nation, according to RealtyTrac, which monitors filings across the country.

The state’s administrative board of judges implemented an affirmation rule in October 2010. Banking attorneys now have to sign an affidavit vouching for the accuracy of the records in a foreclosure, forcing these lawyers to go back and check documentation before filing a case.

While the rule allowed courts to begin working through the backlog, the city hit another snag in November when the default services law firm Steven J. Baum PC announced it would close. Baum, which did work for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, came under investigation for illegally signing foreclosure documents en masse in an effort to speed up the process.

When firms in Florida were shuttered for similar violations, thousands of cases had to transfer to other firms already overbooked. Courts there spent months sorting through the cases to determine which ones needed to be restarted and which ones could proceed. Florida foreclosure timelines skyrocketed to the second longest in the country, just behind New York.

Meanwhile, the 5,615 property sales in third quarter dropped 3.6% from last year. Home values declined in every borough but Manhattan.

“Sales volume continued to lag in the third quarter of 2011, showing little change since last quarter and remaining well below the sales volumes we’ve seen in the city in the past decade,” said Ingrid Gould Ellen, faculty co-director of the Furman Center.

In New York City, values are down more than 20% from the peak, which crested sporadically across all major boroughs just before the financial crisis struck in 2007.

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The inventory of foreclosures held by private banks dropped for the fourth straight quarter to $50.4 billion worth of properties at Sept. 30, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.The REO level at the end of the third quarter is down 1.5% from $51.3 billion the previous quarter and 5% lower than $53.1 billion in a year earlier.

The amount of loans between 30-days and 90-days delinquent declined for the sixth straight quarter to $100.2 billion in the third quarter. The total is down less than 1% from the previous period but down more than 30% from the first quarter of 2010. The peak for early delinquencies occurred in fourth quarter of 2008 with nearly $160 billion such loans held by FDIC-backed banks.

Loans more than 90-days delinquent increased in the third quarter by less than one percentage point to $121.4 billion. The steady decline measured in other distressed buckets has not been seen on these more troubled loans. The peak occurred in the first quarter of last year at more than $143 billion of loans more than 90-days delinquent.

The uptick in the third quarter reflects similar analysis of mortgage servicer activities.According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, roughly 1.08% of outstanding mortgages were in foreclosure during the third quarter, an increase from 0.96% in the previous quarter. But the delinquency rate dropped to 7.99% in the third quarter from 8.45% the prior three months.

Taken together, much work remains to clear the shadow inventory of privately held REO and troubled loans, according to the FDIC data. The banks held more than $272 billion loans either already through the foreclosure process, on the verge of entering it or have fallen delinquent.The bank balance sheets are improving as they work through the backlog. Earnings at the FDIC-backed banks increased 48% from last year, signaling hope to some that restricted lending practices may begin to thaw.

“Banks are aggressively seeking out borrowers with a strong capacity to repay loans” said James Chessen, chief economist for the American Bankers Association. “Slow economic growth and high levels of uncertainty are still restraining lending, but that tide is beginning to turn.”

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Chase_Incentive_Marketing_letter Banks offer cash as high as $3,000 to $35,000 for completed short sales The nation’s largest banks are luring a select number of San Diego County homeowners to complete short sales with the promise of cash, in some cases as much as $35,000 for each deal.

These incentive offers, which require lenders to accept less than what the borrower owes on their mortgage, have surfaced in recent months locally and around the U.S. As straightforward as they seem, they’ve baffled real estate agents and the courted borrowers, many of whom are jobless, behind on mortgage payments, or facing some other financial hardship.They wonder: Why are the likes of Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo aiding homeowners with lump-sum cash offers? And why are certain homeowners chosen and not others?

Lenders won’t say. But they will divulge this: Don’t bother seeking out the incentives. If you qualify, they will come find you.

“It’s not something people can apply for,” Chase spokesman Gary Kishner told the Union-Tribune in a recent phone interview. “We look at case-by-case situations. Even the amount (offered) is case-by-case.”

Chase, the sole bank that provided a specific timeline, said it unrolled its short-sale incentive program late last year. Efforts were ramped up this year and are “now in full swing,” said Kishner, who declined to say how many homeowners received letters.

Bank of America confirmed it’s also offering incentives for completed short sales for “certain borrower profiles,” and Wells Fargo is doing the same, but the cases are “very situational.”

How it works

“Don’t lose hope,” says the letter from Chase to La Jolla resident Cheryl Keenan. “You have options that may help you avoid foreclosure and make a fresh start.”

It goes on to say: “You may be able to owe nothing more on your mortgage and get $35,000 after you sell your home.”

Keenan, who had already received a notice of default, was floored.

“I didn’t believe it,” she said. “It was a generic form letter, nothing to our specific situation or our loan.”

The letters follow a similar structure: You qualify for a new program. If you complete a short sale through this program, you may be eligible for cash to use for moving and other expenses. Once done, you will not be on the hook for future home-loan payments on this home. Call us.

Letter #1 Chase_Incentive_Marketing_letter

Letter #2 Chase_Incentive_Short_Sale letter  

In Keenan’s case, she did call. A bank rep asked her to fax in a listing agreement — a contract between a real estate broker and a seller to give the broker the right to offer the home for sale — and a letter authorizing the broker’s negotiator to talk to the bank’s negotiator.

Once that was done, nearly everything that followed was swift and organized — the typical opinion from homeowners and real estate agents. In some cases, the transaction took three months to complete.

In comparison, the typical time frame for a traditional short sale ranges three to four months or as long as a year. For bank-owned properties, the process on average takes five to six months, show recent national numbers from Irvine-based data company RealtyTrac.

“It was upfront, very quick and streamlined,” said Mike Watson, a Chula Vista agent who has helped a client complete a short-sale incentive deal.

Once Keenan, of La Jolla, put her home on the market, she quickly found a potential buyer and expects to close escrow this month.

The cash incentives, varying from a few thousand to as high as $35,000, are given to the sellers at closing. Banks have declined to say how the amounts are determined, but it appears the larger amounts correlate with larger home loans.

“So far, it looks like they’re going to honor it,” Keenan said.

How banks benefit

The major lenders say they’ve launched the incentive programs to reduce losses in their portfolio, also widely known as loss mitigation in the real estate business.

“(They) want to get some of those nonperforming loans off their books,” said Michael Spilger, a San Diego real estate attorney.

The goal is to keep the homes from going into foreclosure, which can be a lengthy process. Nationwide, properties foreclosed in the second quarter were in the foreclosure process an average of 318 days, RealtyTrac reported in its midyear report.

Also, by letting homeowners stay in their homes during the incentivized short-sale process, banks can curb vandalism at the properties, which can be costly to fix and make it difficult to sell.

That worked on Keenan, the homeowner taking part in Chase’s program.

Fearing she won’t get her incentive at closing, she has made sure her property is “well-kept” until the deal is finalized.

“What you’re trying to do is get a borrower or homeowner to move out of the home as efficiently or quickly,” said Guy Cecala, a national real estate expert and publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance.

What’s in it for the borrowers?

For one, they get a chance at the fresh start mentioned in their offer letters. Many of those courted are behind on mortgage payments, out of work, or likely both, and want a way out.

Also, sellers prefer short sales over foreclosures because they typically have less of an impact on credit scores. But the impact depends on how behind they are on home-loan payments and other factors.

Another attractive aspect of the incentive offers is that banks assure they will release homeowners of any deficiency judgments.

Homeowners in California are further protected by a recently retooled state law that bars first and secondary lien holders from going after sellers for money owed after short sales close.

Shortsale Realtors4u

More questions we can help you, at County Properties, 25 years of brokerage experience, trust and a Member of the local Better Business Bureau! Want to know what your home is worth? Click here for a free market evaluation !

If you have equity in your home, we will sell your home and get top dollar in this challenging market wiht our  Internet Marketing and Sales Program. If you do not have enough equity, and you must sell your property as a short sale we have the expertise to do so also, go to www.ShortSaleRealtors4U.com

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Home values were down on a yearly basis in August, but showed relative stability in the near term, according to indices that track home values nationwide.

Home values fell 4.5 percent year over year in August, to $172,600, and remained essentially flat compared to July, according to the Zillow Home Value Index, released today. CoreLogic’s Home Price Index showed a similar drop year over year, down 4.4 percent, with month-to-month prices also remaining virtually flat.

Overall, prices have dropped 30.5 percent since an April 2006 peak, according to CoreLogic. When distressed sales (bank-owned homes and short sales) are excluded, the drop from peak stood at 21 percent in August.

Zillow’s index report showed a somewhat similar drop from a June 2006 peak: 28.3 percent. That index tracks 157 metropolitan areas nationwide. Of the 25 largest metros tracked, all saw their index values remain virtually the same on a monthly basis.

On a yearly basis, Sacramento, Calif., saw the biggest drop (-11.3 percent), followed by Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. (-10.7 percent) and Atlanta (-10 percent).

Only Pittsburgh experienced year-over-year value appreciation: 2.8 percent. That metro continues to be the only one among the top 25 to have seen its index value remain essentially flat from peak, falling only 0.8 percent.

Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Orlando, Fla., have seen the biggest drops from peak, each down 54.5 percent.

Zillow Home Value Index

Largest 25 metros Zillow Home Value Index Foreclosures
  Aug-11 Y-o-Y Chg. Chg. from peak Homes foreclosed
(for every 10k homes)
Foreclosure
resales
U.S. $172,600 -4.5% -28.3% 9.2 19.5%
New York $350,700 -2.90% -23.30% 0.4 2.5%
Los Angeles $389,900 -6.10% -35.60% 12.9 25.4%
Chicago $172,800 -9.10% -36.30%
Dallas $128,000 -2.80% -11.40% 8.8 18.6%
Philadelphia $194,300 -4.20% -17.70% 3.2 7.2%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla. $139,900 -3.30% -54.50%
Washington, D.C. $315,400 -1.60% -28.10% 5.7 14.1%
Atlanta $121,700 -10% -33.30%
Detroit $75,000 -6.50% -52.80%
Boston $316,200 -3% -20.60%
San Francisco $474,700 -7.10% -32.80% 13 25.5%
Phoenix $123,100 -8% -56.40% 32.3 44.2%
Riverside, Calif. $184,300 -4.40% -54.20% 25.9 46.1%
Seattle $259,800 -6.30% -31.90% 13.6 22.2%
Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn. $159,600 -10.70% -35.40% 11.9 19.6%
San Diego $347,300 -5.80% -35.30% 12.6 27.2%
St. Louis $130,700 -7.30% -16.90%
Tampa, Fla. $106,400 -9.00% -51%
Baltimore $224,000 -3.90% -25.60% 3.2 12%
Denver $198,000 -4.20% -14.70% 11.4 23.9%
Pittsburgh $110,500 2.80% -0.80% 3.8 8.9%
Portland, Ore. $211,400 -4.60% -27.90% 7.9 16.5%
Cleveland $112,300 -4.90% -22.10% 7 19.7%
Sacramento, Calif. $202,400 -11.30% -51.30% 22.7 40.8%
Orlando, Fla. $117,400 -5.10% -54.50%

Source: Zillow.

The rate at which homes were foreclosed in August was 9.2 out of every 10,000 homes, a decline from 10.9 of every 10,000 homes in October 2010, before investigations into documentation irregularities lengthened foreclosure timelines. Foreclosure resales stood at 19.5 percent of overall sales.

“Due to the robo-signing controversy, the pace of foreclosure liquidations has been slower than it would be otherwise, which is impacting home-value trends positively. Eventually the pace will pick up again, putting more bank-owned homes into local markets and putting additional downward pressure on prices,” said Stan Humphries, Zillow’s chief economist, in a statement.

“We remain encouraged about the organic stabilization in home values that we have been seeing absent the federal homebuyer tax credits, but we remain concerned about the impact that recent economic turmoil and continued weak economic indicators will have on future home sales and home-value trends.

“At this point, we maintain the expectation that a definitive bottom will not occur until 2012 at the earliest.”

According to CoreLogic’s price index, home prices fell a slight 0.7 percent year-over-year in August when distressed sales are excluded.

“The continued bright spot is the nondistressed segment of the market, which is only marginally lower than a year ago and continues to exhibit relative strength,” said Mark Fleming, CoreLogic’s chief economist, in a statement.

Of the 100 most-populous metro areas nationwide, 80 saw yearly price declines in August, including seven of the top 10.

10 largest metro areas Y-o-Y Chg. Y-o-Y Chg.
  Single-family Excluding distressed
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Ill.  -10.2% -1.3%
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Ariz.  -9.8% -8.2%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga. -7.2% -2.8%
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.  -6.0% -3.8%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif.  -5.2% 0.7%
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas -2.6% 3.3%
Philadelphia, Pa. -1.7% -1.7%
Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas 0.2% 2.6%
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va. 0.9% 2.4%
New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J.  3.2% 4.0%

Source: CoreLogic.

In September, home prices remained little changed, either from August or over a three-month period starting in July, according to a report from Altos Research.

Altos’ 10-city national composite dipped 0.6 percent in September from August and 1.3 percent from July, to $444,045. Salt Lake City posted the largest price change from August, an increase of 1.7 percent.

Unsold inventory in the 10-city composite fell in every market, declining 1.9 percent overall from August and 2.3 percent from July. Tampa, Fla., posted the biggest decrease from August: 9.9 percent.

“The mass liquidation of foreclosure portfolios is best described as a trickle. The inventory is coming on the market slowly as more loans are modified to keep homeowners in their homes. Although the millions of properties in the shadow inventory are still looming, there is nothing that indicates a flood of foreclosures hitting the market anytime soon,” the report said.

County Properties, 25 years of brokerage experience, trust and a Member of the local Better Business Bureau! We offer free counseling in real estate regarding; home values and information on options of selling vs. Foreclosure.

Click here to get loan information before the rates go up. To get started on viewing homes, condos, investment properties, pre-foreclosures, bank owned foreclosures (REO’s) or thinking of selling your property, please contact me today for free counseling at (619) 540-5811.

New Pro-Property Search. We will setup a customized search for you by our professional REALTOR® Team. Sit back relax and shop at home! We will make changes to your Pro-Property Search any time you like, just let us know. Have fun!

By the way…if you know of someone who would appreciate the level of service in real estate we provide, please call me or have them go to www.CountyProperties.net/ and I’ll be happy to follow up and take great care of them.

California pending home sales climbed in August from both the previous month and year, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported today. The year-to-year increase was the highest level since July 2009.

Pending home sales:

Pending home sales in California rose 7 percent from July, according to C.A.R.’s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)*. The index was 125.3 in August, up from July’s index of 117.1, based on contracts signed in August. The index was up 12.6 percent from August 2010. Pending home sales are forward-looking indicators of future home sales activity, providing information on the future direction of the market.

Distressed housing market data:

  • The total share of all distressed property types sold statewide inched up to 43.7 percent in August from July’s 42.9 percent. The share of distressed sales was lower from a year prior, when distressed sales totaled 44.5 percent of all home sales.
  • Of the distressed properties sold statewide, 18.9 percent were short sales compared to July’s 17.5 percent share and last August’s share of 19.3 percent.
  • The share of REO (real estate-owned) sales was down from both July and a year ago. REOs made up 24.4 percent of sales in August, down from 25.2 percent in July and 24.7 percent in August 2010.
  • Non-distressed sales made up the remaining share of home sales in August at 56.3 percent, down from 57.1 percent in July and 55.5 percent in August 2010.

Multimedia:

• View a chart of pending sales compared with closed sales.

Share of Distressed Sales to Total Sales

(Single-family)

Type of Sale Aug. 2010 Jul-11 Aug. 2011
REOs 24.70% 25.20% 24.40%
Short Sales 19.30% 17.50% 18.90%
Misc Distress 0.40% 0.30% 0.40%
 
Total Distress 44.50% 42.90% 43.70%

 

 *Note: C.A.R.’s pending sales information is generated from a survey of more than 70 associations of REALTORS® and MLSs throughout the state. Pending home sales are forward-looking indicators of future home sales activity, offering solid information on future changes in the direction of the market. A sale is listed as pending after a seller has accepted a sales contract on a property. The majority of pending home sales usually becomes closed sales transactions one to two months later. The year 2008 was used as the benchmark for the Pending Homes Sales Index. An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2008. 

 Single-family Distressed Home Sales by Select Counties

(Percent of total sales)

County Aug. 2010 Jul-11 Aug. 2011
Amador 34% 55% 59%
Butte 29% 43% 42%
Humboldt 20% 27% 31%
Kern 63% 62% 60%
Lake 74% 73% 64%
Los Angeles 46% 42% 44%
Madera 62% 86% 73%
Marin 29% 25% 27%
Mendocino 52% 61% 48%
Merced 53% 71% 59%
Monterey 59% 61% 62%
Napa 39% 51% 48%
Orange 31% 32% 33%
Riverside 68% 62% 62%
Sacramento 63% 60% 62%
San Benito 60% 65% 67%
SanBrnrdino 68% 65% 64%
San Diego 27% 26% 27%
SanLuisObispo 41% 42% 45%
San Mateo 27% 23% 25%
Santa Clara 31% 28% 31%
Santa Cruz 34% 40% 35%
Solano 67% 70% 71%
Sonoma 41% 46% 43%
Tehama 80% 72% 56%
CALIFORNIA 44% 43% 44%

 If you have equity in your home, we will sell your home and get top dollar in this challenging market, go to County Properties Marketing Homes. If you do not have enough equity, and you must sell your property as a short sale we have the expertise to do so also and close escrow in 45-60 days or less. Learn more about mortgage relief options and how to take advantage of our FREE REALTOR (R)  CONSULTATION for loan modification and or selling .  or go to www.ShortSaleRealtors4U.com

More questions we can help you, at County Properties, 25 years of brokerage experience, trust and a Member of the local Better Business Bureau! Want to know what your home is worth? Click here for a free market evaluation !

By the way…if you know of someone who would appreciate the level of service in real estate we provide, please call me or have them go to www.CountyProperties.net and I’ll be happy to follow up and take great care of them.

Pending home sales in California fell 1.7 percent in July, according to C.A.R.’s Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)*.  The index was 117.0 in July, down from June’s index of 119.0, based on contracts signed in July.

The index was up 4.9 percent from July 2010.  Pending home sales are forward-looking indicators of future home sales activity, providing information on the future direction of the market.

The total share of all distressed property types sold statewide fell to 44.5 percent in July, down from June’s 46.9 percent.  The share of distressed sales also was down from a year prior, when distressed sales totaled 47.7 percent of all home sales.
Non-distressed sales made up the remaining share of home sales in July at 55.5 percent, up from 53.1 percent in June and 52.3 percent in July 2010.

County Properties, 25 years of brokerage experience, trust and a Member of the local Better Business Bureau! We offer free counseling in real estate regarding; home values and information on options of selling vs. Foreclosure.

Click here to get loan information before the rates go up. To get started on viewing homes, condos, investment properties, pre-foreclosures, bank owned foreclosures (REO’s) or thinking of selling your property, please contact me today for free counseling at (619) 540-5811 .

New Pro-Property Search. We will setup a customized search for you by our professional REALTOR® Team. Sit back relax and shop at home! We will make changes to your Pro-Property Search any time you like, just let us know. Have fun!

By the way…if you know of someone who would appreciate the level of service in real estate we provide, please call me or have them go to www.CountyProperties.net/ and I’ll be happy to follow up and take great care of them.


     Real Estate Weather Report for California
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