Comparing July's conforming mortgage rates to today's average rates, there's a 1.5 percent difference in favor of homeowners. Rate drops like that make big differences in a household budget. Look at these before-and-after payments, based on rates from the chart: $150,000 mortgage ($144 savings/month) July 2008: $958 monthly February 2009: $814 monthly $250,000 mortgage ($240 savings/month) July 2008: $1,597 monthly February 2009: $1,357 monthly $350,000 mortgage ($335 savings/month) July 2008: $2,235 … [Read more...]
Big Bear Home Sales – January 2009
February 5, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Home sales in Big Bear for January 2009 (47) were up 37% as compared to January 2008 (30), and 13% compared to December 2008 (41). January is normally one of the 4 slowest months of the year for sales so this is pretty good news all things considered. 25, or 59%, of the 47 home sales in Big Bear, were either bank owned or short sales. This is up from 44% of the total sales last month. I suspect this number will continue to rise this year. Not great news but we have to get them sold in order to get through this … [Read more...]
Home Buyers Are Getting Off Of The Fence
February 4, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday that Pending Home Sales ticked higher in December 2008. A "pending home sale" is a home under contract to sell, sometimes referred to as "in escrow", but not yet closed. The group positions Pending Home Sales report as a predictor of future activity, suggesting that home sales will spike 60 days hence. This is good news for the economy. However, despite the Pending Home Sales report's correlation to the actual number of homes sold in the future, that … [Read more...]
Big Bear Real Estate – Monday Market Update For 2/2/2009
February 2, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Below is your weekly update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 2/2/2009. Property Type Listings for Sale Change from Last Week Pending Sales Change from Last Week Sales Year to Date Change from Last Week RESIDENTIAL 906 -24 126 +7 40 +10 VACANT LAND 334 -11 13 +3 0 0 CONDOS 48 -1 6 0 1 0 GOVERNMENT LEASE 11 0 0 0 0 0 COMMERCIAL & RES INVESTMENT 50 -1 3 0 0 0 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY 11 0 0 0 0 0 TOTAL 1360 -37 148 +10 41 +10 A few notes about the market - Residential properties are … [Read more...]
Big Bear Home Sellers, Have You Considered Staging?
January 30, 2009 by 2 Comments
Super Bowl Weekend traditionally marks the start of the Spring Buying Season in real estate. Anecdotally, real estate agents will tell you that buyer activity tends to tick higher at this time of the year. Meanwhile, with mortgage rates still trolling near all-time lows and Congress debating a first-time homebuyer tax credit, 2009 may bring out even more buyers than we've seen in the past. Just having your home on the market may not be enough to attract an offer, though -- the home has to have appeal. That … [Read more...]
Explaining What The Federal Reserve Did In Plain English (January 28, 2009 Edition)
January 29, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged today. It remains within a target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. In its press release, the FOMC reiterated most of the key points from its December 2008 statement, including: The U.S. employment outlook continues to deteriorate Consumers and businesses continue to cut spending The housing sector is still showing weakness In addition, the FOMC addressed the "extremely tight" credit conditions for U.S. households and business, even as … [Read more...]
How Today’s Federal Reserve Meeting Could Change Home Affordability
January 28, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from its 2-day meeting today. The monetary policy-setting group is expected leave the Fed Funds Rate within its current target range of 0.00-0.250 percent. This is the lowest range for the Fed Funds Rate in history and, frankly, there isn't much room left to go lower. Therefore, markets aren't really concerned about what happens to the benchmark lending rate today. Instead, markets will focus on the Fed's ideas to revive the U.S. economy. In its post-FOMC press … [Read more...]
Big Bear Real Estate – Monday Market Update For 1/26/2009
January 26, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Below is your weekly update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 1/26/2009. Property Type Listings for Sale Change from Last Week Pending Sales Change from Last Week Sales Year to Date Change from Last Week RESIDENTIAL 930 -6 119 +6 30 +9 VACANT LAND 345 +6 10 +1 0 0 CONDOS 49 -2 6 +1 1 0 GOVERNMENT LEASE 11 0 0 0 0 0 COMMERCIAL & RES INVESTMENT 51 -1 3 0 0 0 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY 11 -1 0 0 0 0 TOTAL 1397 -4 138 +8 31 +9 A few notes about the market - Of the 15 residential properties … [Read more...]
