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Beware: Lenders will add an extra step before close of escrow.

You are in escrow? Don’t apply for any new credit! You have been seaching for months to find your deam home in a decent location and you think you have it in the bag, having outbid multiple offers along the way and you are now safely in escrow. Everything is going great, you are a few weeks away from closing and you are already shopping around for all of the home furnishings you will need to... [Read more]

How Affordable is Los Angeles Now?

Buying a home for sale in the Los Angeles area is getting cheaper, but it can still be pricey proposition. A recent article published by the California Association of Realtors shows that the entry-level housing affordability is 66% for California for the first quarter of 2010. The entry-level housing affordability measures the percentage of households that can afford to buy an entry level property.... [Read more]

Double Dipping?

A recent article published by the California Association of Realtors examines whether we are headed for another decline in house prices. According to the article, the sale of homes decreased by 11.7% from February 2010 to February 2009, while the median price rose to $279,840. Are we gearing towards another dip? The C.A.R. says it is unlikely based on the following elements: - affordability is... [Read more]

April is Not the Cruelest Month For Real Estate

Just like it is for the weather, April is something of a transitional month for real estate in Southern California. This seems to be the case this year we are facing the expiration of the federal tax credit of up to $8000 for first time home buyers who enter into contract by April 30. (Now that California has joined the game by throwing in an additional tax credit, for a short while at least,... [Read more]

A Real Estate Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  Prospective home buyers and refinancers alike can be especially thankful this year.  According to the L.A. Times, Fannie Mae reports that during the week that ended yesterday (before the Thanksgiving holiday) mortgage rates dropped to a record low (4.78%!!), a level last seen in April, during much gloomier economic times.  Not surprisingly, these low rates have already gotten... [Read more]

BiggerPockets.com

I was recently chosen to be an official contributor as a Real Estate News columnist on Biggerpockets.com.  I have always admired Bigger Pockets for the depth and quality of content, so I was naturally thrilled to be selected to be a contributor.   The founder of Bigger Pockets, Josh Dorkin, is an amazing guy and a former Keller Williams® agent. My first “official” Bigger Pockets post related... [Read more]

The “Shadow” knows.

Back in July, I mentioned the growing phenomenon of the so-called “shadow” inventory, which are the properties that by all rights should have been foreclosed on a long time ago, but where the banks are, for reasons of their own, not taking any action. The mainstream media has caught up, and there are two recent articles about shadow inventory that you should know about. One is in the... [Read more]

Roadblock to FHA financing

First time home buyers (together with investors), are a major force behind the recent increase in sales in the San Fernando Valley. With FHA financing, first time home buyers can theoretically buy with as little as 3.5% down, and help themselves to the juicy government incentive/tax credit of up to $8,000 (at least, until Dec. 1, unless there is a change in the law in the meantime). Not so fast. ... [Read more]

First Time Homebuyers Going to Extremes Part Two: Getting Lucky at an REDC Auction

After months of looking for a property for my client, who was looking for a condo in the San Fernando Valley, we were both starting to lose hope in making the impending deadline for receiving federal first time homebuyer assistance.   When his purchase offers were not completely ignored by REO listing agents (despite the fact that he was offering well above asking price), they were rejected in favor... [Read more]

Where Cash is King, First Time Homebuyers are Going To Extremes

In order to secure their first home in advance of the impending deadline for receiving federal first time homebuyer assistance, San Fernando Valley buyers are being forced to take extreme measures.  Why?   The vast majority of suitable (i.e., affordable) properties are bank owned and are receiving many, many offers.  Worse, a large number of these properties is ultimately being sold to all-cash... [Read more]

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