Property Type:   Residential       Status:   Active

#

Type

Address

City/ Area

TGNO

Bed

B t/f

St

Gar

SqFt

YBlt

List Price

1 

SFR 

HB/ 15 

827E2 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,112 

1963 

$449,900 

2 

SFR 

HB/ 15 

857H1 

3 

2/2 

1 

2 

1,134 

1963 

$485,000 

3 

SFR 

HB/ 16 

858A3 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,285 

1956 

$475,000 

4 

SFR 

HB/ 16 

828B6 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,482 

1960 

$489,000 

5 

SFR 

HB/ 16 

828B7 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,476 

1963 

$499,000 

6 

SFR 

HB/ 16 

828B7 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,200 

1964 

$499,900 

7 

SFR 

HB/ 17 

827J4 

3 

2/1 

1 

2 

1,268 

1962 

$460,000 

8 

SFR 

HB/ 17 

827h4 

3 

2/2 

1 

2 

1,291 

1962 

$499,000 

Average

3

2

1,281

$482,100

Number of Properties: 8 Average ( ListPrice / SqFt ) : ( 482100 / 1281 ) = $ 376.35                                                  

        These are ALL the Huntington Beach single family homes under $500,000 list price on August 24^th.  There are only eight of them. Of these, only two are a standard sale. The rest are distressed sales in some stage of foreclosure. The fact that the inventory is so low in this price range is significant. It is establishing a floor for Huntington Beach. All real estate is local and this is what is happening in our local market today.

        Contact me if you or someone that you care about wants to buy a house in HB or the surrounding communities of Fountain Valley, Costa Mesa, Westminster, Garden Grove, Cypress, Los Alamitos, Buena Park, Anaheim or Santa Ana. There are buying opportunites and a bonus $8,000 credit to firsttime home buyers until November 30th. Don’t wait. You must close on your purchase by Nov 3oth.

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The question is “Will it last?” Foretelling the future is always risky. So many factors influence the market. The level of unemployment, the availability of credit and the ever-nebulous consumer confidence impact sales to varying degrees. On a larger scale is the balance (or imbalance) of supply vs demand which can tip the scales toward a buyer’s or a seller’s market, driving values up and down.

Right now the inventory of homes on the market is dwindling, shifting the balance toward sellers.  When more properties are brought “on market”, the balance will shift toward buyers unless the homes are mostly distressed properties. A bank-owned or short sale listing will almost always be in high demand and generate multiple offers which drives the price up. Therefore, a large inventory of distressed sales represent a seller’s market.

The public’s perception is that home sales are mostly in the “distressed” end of the residential market. Advertised “Home Auctions” and “bank-owned” properties plus media stories of displaced families due to foreclosure dominate the realty news.  In some communities this is true, where 90% of recent sales are distressed properties.  In other communities the closed sales are dominated by “equity” sales from sellers who are not in foreclosure.  All real estate is local and it pays to know your market.

A first-time buyer and a home seller would be best served by aligning themselves with a professional who knows that local market.  Both parties will benefit from the knowledge of a local expert who actively works in the marketplace daily.  A local Realtor will know the accurate value range of a home and facilitate the disclosure of the home’s condition and the title clearance that is critical in any transaction. A knowledgeable third party can negotiate in an unemotional way to create a win-win for both sides that will appraise and close escrow! An internet entity facilitating a home sale when the on-line contact has no local knowledge, leaves one or both sides open to liability. Buyer and seller beware.

Therefore, take the guess work out of your real estate transaction. Work with an experienced realtor!

Investors with all cash or substantial cash downpayments are competing with firsttime home buyers who want their piece of the American dream. It is so very important for firsttime buyers to be pre-approved for a loan and have it in writing from a “direct lender”. A direct lender backs the mortgage from its assets. A major bank or a credit union is an example of a direct lender. There are others who also qualify as direct lenders. Some mortgage companies are direct lenders. It’s important to know who you are dealing with, because many bank owned listings will sell to a buyer who is financing the purchase with a mortgage only if the mortgage is from a direct lender.

The mortgage interest rate is still historically LOW – below 5% for a fixed rate conforming loan. With house values as low as they are it makes sense to be buying a home at this time. Remember that you are buying a home first, not an investment. As we have seen all too clearly, speculating that house prices will always go up can be a big mistake. But if you have been waiting to take advantage of low interest rates and low home values, your time is here!

You may have to bid above list price to get the house you want. As with any auction you may lose to someone who offers more. Don’t be discouraged. Find an experienced realtor to help you find a house and negotiate for it.  Or, visit the auctions and try your luck there. But it is “buyer beware” out there because you purchase a property “as is” at an auction. There can be tax and reconveyance issues to contend with as well as repairs that may cost you more than you bargained for.

As a member of a special group called ROHRS, I have information about bank owned properties and how to “package” an offer for the bank to consider.  Many offers on bank owned homes never get seen by the bank, if they are not packaged properly. You must work with an experienced realtor who will get your offer seen by the bank’s representative. Once your offer is accepted you will have a limited time to have the home inspected and your loan funded. It’s a balancing act that requires everything to happen correctly. Let me know if I can help you.

As stated on the OC Assessor’s website, www.ocgov.com/assessor/, the Assessor will review the value of every property in the County between January 1 and June 2009, and will implement a temporary value reduction for all eligible properties. There is no charge for this service.

There is a question/answer feature on their home page that will explain the assessor’s process in determining property values and how you can appeal that decision. You can request an informal review if you believe that your Market Value is lower than your Taxable Value.

You can download the Request for Informal Assessment Review form from the website at  www.ocgov.com/assessor/.  Completed forms must be returned to the Assessor by April 30, 2009. You will need to provide up to three (3) sales or listings in your area that occur on or before March 31, 2009 to support your claim for a lower valuation. (Foreclosures may not be an indicator of market value.)  However, if your neighborhood has a preponderance of foreclosed and bank owned sales, then your market value may well be dictated by those recent sales.

If you need assistance with obtaining the form or the necessary recent sales information, contact me at 714-932-5529 or email me at pat@patmonahan.com. Remember the deadline to file the review is April 30, 2009.

Admission is FREE!

As seen in the LA Times Custom Publishing insert on 4/16, the Home Buyer’s Fair will educate home buyers about assistance programs, opportunities for first-time home buyers and how to successfully navigate today’s real estate market.  The free event will feature more than 50 “how to” sessions about the home-buying process as well as 70 exhibit booths offering information and guidance to home buyers. Several sessions will also be offered in Spanish.

You will find seminars on monitoring your credit score, finding and applying for a mortgage loan, assistance programs for first-time home buyers and how to choose and successfully work with a REALTOR.  Popular sessions such as “How to Find and Buy Foreclosures, Short Sales and REO’s” will be repeated so you can make the most of your visit.

Free movie tickets will be distributed by C.A.R. for the first 200 attendees each day, immediately following the welcome and opening remarks. One ticket per person.

For information about the event visit www.homebuyersfair.com

If you are looking for a deal in Orange County or the coastal communities of Long Beach, Seal Beach, Huntington Beach and Costa Mesa-Newport Beach, contact me for up-to-date inventory information. I know the best areas, the market values and the property condition for the best deals. Save your time and gas, and avoid the frustration of finding those deals too late to make a bid on them.

As you can see from the gallery of properties on my “home page”, the deals sell fast. Don’t wait! Contact Pat Monahan at (714) 932-5529 today!