Santa Barbara Real Estate

Housing Crisis to End in 2012 as Banks Loosen Credit Standards

2012-02-21T15:55:00.000-08:00

Capital Economics expects the housing crisis to end this year, according to a report released Tuesday. One of the reasons: loosening credit.

The analytics firm notes the average credit score required to attain a mortgage loan is 700. While this is higher than scores required prior to the crisis, it is constant with requirements one year ago.
Additionally, a Fed Senior Loan Officer Survey found credit requirements in the fourth quarter were consistent with the past three quarters.

However, other market indicators point not just to a stabilization of mortgage lending standards, but also a loosening of credit availability.
Banks are now lending amounts up to 3.5 times borrower earnings. This is up from a low during the crisis of 3.2 times borrower earnings.
Banks are also loosening loan-to-value ratios (LTV), which Capital Economics denotes “the clearest sign yet of an improvement in mortgage credit conditions.”

In contrast to a low of 74 percent reached in mid-2010, banks are now lending at 82 percent LTV.

While credit conditions may have loosened slightly, some potential homebuyers are still struggling with credit requirements. In fact, Capital Economics points out that in November 8 percent of contract cancellations were the result of a potential buyer not qualifying for a loan.

Additionally, Capital Economics says “any improvement in credit conditions won’t be significant enough to generation actual house price gains,” and potential ramifications from the euro-zone pose a threat to future credit availability.
DSNews.com
By: Krista Franks

Q&A: What the foreclosure settlement means for homeowners

2012-02-13T10:24:00.000-08:00

Here's how homeowners can get their share of the $25-billion foreclosure settlement.

By Matt Stevens
February 9, 2012, 12:17 p.m.
Homeowners who were affected by the collapse of the housing market and a wave of foreclosure abuses may get a share of the $25-billion settlement announced Thursday morning.

The up to 2 million people who are struggling to make loan payments, owe more than their homes are worth or have already lost their homes could receive aid from the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers that settled with federal officials and 49 state attorneys general today.

Though it is unclear exactly how much money each homeowner might receive, officials have estimated that about $17 billion will go to current homeowners, to help reduce the principal they owe on their mortgages, while people who have already lost their homes can expect to receive checks for $1,500 to $2,000.

The National Mortgage Settlement has prepared some immediate answers for homeowners wondering how to get their share of the settlement:

Q: What is a mortgage servicer and how do I know who services my loan?

A: The company that you make your monthly payment to is your mortgage servicer. Your mortgage servicer may or may not be a lending institution and may or may not own your loan. Many of the loans administered by servicers are owned by third-party investors.

This settlement involves the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers and you may reach them at the Web sites and phone numbers below:
Ally/GMAC: 800-766-4622
Bank of America: 877-488-7814
Citi: 866-272-4749
JPMorgan Chase: 866-372-6901
Wells Fargo: 800-288-3212

Loans owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are not impacted by this settlement. You may visit the following websites to learn if your loan is owned by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac:
http://www.fanniemae.com/loanlookup
http://www.freddiemac.com/mymortgage

These sites will also include information about mortgage and foreclosure programs you may be eligible to access.

Q: How will I know whether this settlement affects my situation?

A: Only homeowners in the states who joined the settlement are eligible for benefits under this settlement. Borrowers from Oklahoma will not be eligible for any of the relief directly to homeowners because Oklahoma elected not to join the settlement.

Click here for the full LA Times article: Q&A: What the foreclosure settlement means for homeowners

Mortgage deal could bring billions in relief

2012-02-13T10:15:00.000-08:00

WASHINGTON (CNNMoney) -- In the largest deal to date aimed at addressing the housing meltdown, federal and state officials on Thursday announced a $26 billion foreclosure settlement with five of the largest home lenders.

The deal settles potential state charges about allegations of improper foreclosures based on robosigning, seizures made without proper paperwork.

The settlement includes the Justice Department and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as 49 state attorneys general -- all but Oklahoma.

"We are using this opportunity to fix a broken system," said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder at the news conference announcing the settlement.

The settlement sets up a federal monitor to oversee the process and try to prevent roadblocks and red tape that tripped many homeowners seeking help in earlier programs designed to address the housing crisis.

President Obama said the settlement will "begin to turn the page on an era of wrecklessness that has left so much damage in its wake."
"No action, no matter how meaningful, is going to by itself entirely heal the housing market," he said in separate remarks. "But this settlement is a start."
Most of the relief will go to those who owe far more than their homes are worth, known as being underwater on the loans. That relief will come over the course of the next three years, with the banks having incentives to provide most of the relief in the next 12 months.

"This settlement is about homeowners, homeowners in distress," said Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller at the news conference with state and federal officials.

What the settlement means to you

Principal reduction: At least $17 billion will go to reducing the principal owed by homeowners who are both underwater and behind on their mortgages.

The agreement calls for principal reduction for as many as 1 million people. But it's unlikely the money will go that far, because many people need more than the $17,000 average reduction that would result if the money is split among 1 million homeowners.

At the same time, total principal reduction could go higher -- to as much as $34 billion -- since the agreement requires deeper principal reductions for the most troubled loans.

Refinancing: Officials say up to 750,000 other underwater homeowners who are current on their mortgages will be able to refinance their current loans at lower rates. They will not receive a reduction in principal, but with mortgage rates now near record lows, they could receive substantial savings on their monthly payments.

The settlement sets aside $3 billion to account for the reduced interest payments the banks will receive after the refinancing.

Robosigning payments: About $1.5 billion of the settlement will go to homeowners who had their homes foreclosed upon between Jan. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2011, and who meet other criteria. They will receive up to $2,000 each.

Accepting that payment does not preclude homeowners who lost their home in an improper foreclosure from suing the bank to recover damages, Donovan said.

Participating banks: The five mortgage servicers that are parties to the settlement -- Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500), Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), Wells Fargo (WFC, Fortune 500) and Ally Financial -- will pay a total of $5 billion to the states and federal government. Some of that money will go to foreclosed homeowners and the rest to the states.

Federal officials say negotiations are underway to expand the settlement to nine other major servicers, which would raise the overall value of the settlement to $30 billion.

Related settlements: The deal spurred pacts between the authorities and banks in similar cases.

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt announced a separate $18.6 million settlement that addressed homeowners whose homes were foreclosed through improper means, but did not provide help to those whose mortgages were underwater. He said he believes the broader agreement "overreached" the authority of both federal and state governments.

"We had concerns that what started as an effort to correct specific practices harmful to consumers, morphed into an attempt by President Obama to ... fundamentally restructure the mortgage industry in the United States," Pruitt said.

The Federal Reserve said it had reached an agreement with the five banks to pay $766.5 million in sanctions related to their servicing practices. And Loretta Lynch, the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y., announced a $1 billion settlement with Bank of America to resolve claims of underwriting and mortgage origination fraud by BofA and mortgage lender Countrywide Financial, which BofA bought in 2008.

The bigger foreclosure problem: The $26 billion deal announced Thursday is the second biggest settlement ever involving states. It trails only the $206 billion pact in 1998 with the tobacco industry.

And it dwarfs any settlements that major Wall Street firms have reached to resolve other allegations of misdeeds related to the financial markets meltdown and the Great Recession.

Still it only will help a faction of those homeowners who are struggling with mortgages. The relief would not be available to those homeowners whose mortgages have been sold to the government-sponsored mortgage guarantors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

There are 1.5 million homeowners who are 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgages but not yet in foreclosure, according to the most recent estimate from the Mortgage Bankers Association. An additional 1.9 million are in the foreclosure process. And CoreLogic estimates that 11 million homeowners are underwater on their mortgages.
Obama proposes new home refinancing plan.

The settlement does not preclude criminal prosecutions from being pursued. It also doesn't stop investigations into other allegations of misdoings, such as the process of bundling loans into mortgage-backed securities and selling them to investors.

"It wasn't the servicing practices that created the bubble nor caused the collapse," said Donovan. "It was the origination and the securitization of these horrendous products. We will be aggressive about going after those claims."

The deal is supposed to protect consumers when it comes to robosigning, and ensure that mortgage servicers agree to communicate better, avoid delays and give homeowners who are late on mortgage payments a fairer shake.

New York's participation had been shaky this week, because some of the banks involved in the multi-state deal had also been sued by Attorney General Eric Schneiderman last week. Those banks -- Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase -- had also asked for a legal pass from Schneiderman's lawsuit, which accuses them of deceptive foreclosure practices for relying on the Mortgage Electronic Registration System.
On Tuesday, Schneiderman's office organized a media briefing to talk about the deal and then canceled it minutes before it was supposed to begin.

The big question throughout the negotiations was how much money would be available to help homeowners, which depended on how many states agreed to the deal. California's participation raises the total settlement value by several billion dollars.

At least one consumer advocacy group, the Center for Responsible Lending, has said the deal -- while "no silver bullet" -- leaves room to hold banks accountable in other mortgage probes, said Kathleen Day, a spokeswoman for the nonprofit.

But other left-leaning groups, including Move On and the New Bottom Line, are continuing to urge states to hold out for a big criminal investigation and a $300 billion settlement award.

--CNN's Jessica Yellin contributed to this story.
First Published: February 9, 2012: 10:07 AM ET

Housing Crisis to End in 2012 as Banks Loosen Credit Standards

2012-02-09T07:09:00.000-08:00

Capital Economics expects the housing crisis to end this year, according to a report released Tuesday. One of the reasons: loosening credit.

Additionally, a Fed Senior Loan Officer Survey found credit requirements in the fourth quarter were consistent with the past three quarters.

However, other market indicators point not just to a stabilization of mortgage lending standards, but also a loosening of credit availability.

Banks are now lending amounts up to 3.5 times borrower earnings. This is up from a low during the crisis of 3.2 times borrower earnings.

Banks are also loosening loan-to-value ratios (LTV), which Capital Economics denotes “the clearest sign yet of an improvement in mortgage credit conditions.”

In contrast to a low of 74 percent reached in mid-2010, banks are now lending at 82 percent LTV.

BY: KRISTA FRANKs

Home prices decline for a third straight month

2012-02-01T14:13:00.000-08:00

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of 20 large U.S. cities fell 1.3% in November from October as foreclosures continue to drag down the housing market.

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

February 1, 2012

Three straight months of home-price declines in the biggest U.S. cities showed that foreclosures remain a significant drag on a housing market that is entering its fifth year of deterioration.

Nineteen of the 20 metropolitan areas tracked by the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index fell in November — the second consecutive month that every metro area other than Phoenix was down and the third consecutive month that the overall index has declined. The index fell 1.3% from October to November and 3.7% from November 2010.

Home prices typically fall during the winter, when investors looking for lower-priced homes make up a larger share of the market. In addition, most home-buying is done in the spring and summer. Nevertheless, economists viewed the continued home-price weakness as a sign that any recovery this year would be anemic.

"We have more house-price declines coming," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. "I'm more optimistic about improvement in sales and construction figures, but I think prices will fall further this year, largely because we still have to work through the mountain of foreclosed properties."

Karl E. Case, a Wellesley College professor and co-creator of the index, said the nation's housing market could be approaching a "rocky bottom," meaning the big drops in home values characteristic of earlier in the crisis are perhaps over, but any improvements would come in fits and starts. The huge percentage of American homeowners who owe more on their properties than those homes are worth remains the biggest barrier to recovery, Case said.

About 1 in 5 borrowers are underwater, according to the most recent data from Santa Ana firm CoreLogic. That slice of the market is important because these property owners will continue to enter the market and put downward pressure on prices whenever demand for homes picks up, Case said.

"There are still going to be problems getting people out of these negative-equity positions," Case said. "We won't know the effect until it's over; it could drag out."

The Case-Shiller index, created by economists Case and Robert J. Shiller, is widely considered the most reliable read on home values. The housing index compares the latest sales of detached houses with previous sales and accounts for factors such as remodeling that might affect a house's sale price over time.

U.S. home prices are back to their mid-2003 levels, according to the 20-city index. They are down 32.9% from their peak, in July 2006.

Values hit bottom in April 2009 during the depths of the financial crisis and briefly dipped below that threshold in March. Prices began gaining ground again last year as the spring and summer selling season picked up.

With three consecutive months of decline, prices are again poised to dip below that post-crisis low, with the 20-city index hovering only 0.6% above the "double-dip" territory as defined by S&P/Case-Shiller.

"We will probably see some decline in nationwide prices, not a plunge, but maybe 4%," said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. "There will be a lot of regional variation, but I think the overall trend is still downward."

Atlanta continued to show the poorest price performance, posting a new index low in November. That city was down 2.5% after dropping 5% in October, 5.9% in September and 2.4% in August. Las Vegas, Seattle and Tampa, Fla., also all reached new lows in November.

In Los Angeles, prices were down 1% in November after falling 1.5% the month before. Year over year, L.A. prices were down 5.4.%.The index does not track prices in California's Central Valley or the Inland Empire, where housing is still weak and the foreclosure rates of many cities are among the nation's highest.

The share of distressed properties for sale in each area tracked by the index appears to be playing a significant role in how those markets are doing.

After being hit hard by foreclosures earlier in the crisis, Phoenix has posted home-price gains in recent months as investors snapped up low-priced properties and the job market showed some improvement. Foreclosures in Phoenix accounted for 38.5% of all resale homes in November, the lowest share of the market since May 2008, according to San Diego real estate information firm DataQuick.

On the other end of the spectrum, Atlanta had the largest number of foreclosed properties for sale by government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in November, Patrick Newport, U.S. economist for IHS Global Insight, noted Tuesday, citing a Federal Reserve white paper sent to Congress last month pushing for more urgent action on housing.

Given the continued malaise in housing, the Obama administration has taken new measures to right the property market. Last week, the government announced the expansion of its signature foreclosure relief program, a new refinancing plan for borrowers and a new investigative unit that will further probe the mortgage-related abuses that caused the housing collapse.

News of the latest housing value declines came as consumer confidence in the economy turned negative in January after improving in December, according to the Conference Board's consumer confidence index. The index had increased in December but fell 3.7 points.

alejandro.lazo@latimes.com

Two Obama initiatives to address foreclosure crisis face hurdles

2012-01-30T13:38:00.000-08:00

The president's proposals include an expanded refinancing plan for struggling homeowners and a new, aggressive probe of financial firms' mortgage practices.

By Jim Puzzanghera and Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times
January 26, 2012

Reporting from Washington and Los Angeles— Two new initiatives from President Obama to address the foreclosure crisis — more help for struggling homeowners and aggressive investigations of financial firms — face significant hurdles as the nation's real estate troubles linger in a volatile election year.

A new refinancing plan that expands on an existing initiative would allow homeowners who are current on their mortgage payments to retool their loans and save as much as $3,000 a year on payments. This expansion would be paid for by a new tax on large banks that Obama originally proposed in 2010 that has gone nowhere in Congress — and is unlikely to be approved by Republicans facing reelection in the fall.

The new investigative effort, to be co-chaired by New York Atty. Gen. Eric Schneiderman and four federal officials, will try to coordinate a number of existing federal and state probes into mortgage practices that led to the financial crisis.

Although Schneiderman promised Wednesday to move aggressively, many of those investigations have been going on for years. If the goal is to get criminal convictions — Obama called in his State of the Union address "to hold accountable those who broke the law" — it will be difficult to accomplish, said Thomas Gorman, an attorney at Dorsey & Whitney in Washington.

"Frankly, it's coming to the table somewhat late," said Gorman, a former enforcement official at the Securities and Exchange Commission. "There's a huge body of information out there about what happened, and there have been very few criminal charges brought."

Obama administration officials released few details about the initiatives Wednesday. There was not even a price tag on the refinancing plan, which will be part of legislation to be outlined in the coming days, the White House said.

The proposal builds off the Home Affordable Refinance Program, which was revamped last year to ease rules and reduce fees to make 1 million to 2 million homeowners eligible to take advantage of historically low mortgage rates. That plan applied only to loans owned or backed by mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but the new plan would apply to any mortgage, the administration said.

Jed Kolko, chief economist and head of analytics at real estate website Trulia.com, said other potential government initiatives would "help the housing market more directly." Such initiatives could include converting foreclosed homes into rentals or increasing loan modifications.

"This is primarily economic stimulus," Kolko said. "It puts money in the pockets of people with mortgages. It won't impact the housing market much."

"Underwater borrowers," or those whose mortgage balances exceed the value of their homes, "will remain underwater, and you need to be current on your payments to refinance," Kolko added.

The White House had no details on what Obama called "a small fee on the largest financial institutions" to offset the costs. In January 2010, Obama first proposed a "financial crisis responsibility fee" of 0.15% annually on the liabilities, excluding domestic deposits, of banks and other financial firms with at least $50 billion in assets. The fee would have raised $9 billion a year for 10 years.

But with strong opposition from the financial industry, Obama was unable to push the fee through the Democratic-controlled Congress. With Republicans now controlling the House, "the bank tax is definitely a poison pill," said Edward Mills, a financial policy analyst at FBR Capital Markets & Co.

The new investigative effort will focus on "every aspect of the conduct that created the bubble and crash," including the origination of mortgages and the packaging of them into securities, Schneiderman said. The unit will be part of the existing federal Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which Obama created in 2009.

"We're undertaking a more coordinated effort to pull together all of the various strands of investigations relating to the conduct that created the mortgage-backed securities bubble and led to the market crash," Schneiderman told reporters Wednesday. "We're now making a concerted effort to pull everything together and move forward aggressively to address these issues."

Some liberal groups have been pushing for a broader investigation into the financial crisis and praised the initiative.

"By launching this investigation, President Obama will take a crucial step toward holding the 1% on Wall Street accountable for the big bank fraud that nearly torpedoed the economy," said Justin Ruben, executive director of MoveOn.org.

But Anthony Sanders, a professor of real estate finance at George Mason University, said the new unit would be regulatory overkill and was designed to pressure banks to agree to a proposed $25-billion settlement with federal officials and many state attorneys general to address foreclosure paperwork problems.

"This could have been a last-ditch effort to push them to the finish line," Sanders said of the settlement talks.

Schneiderman has been one of the most aggressive state attorneys general in investigating the actions of financial firms and others leading up to the housing bust. Along with California Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris, Schneiderman has balked at broadly releasing banks from legal liability as part of the foreclosure settlement talks.

They and several other attorneys general are concerned that the immunity would be so broad that it would preclude other investigations into the causes of the crisis.

A spokesman for Schneiderman said he would not sign on to any settlement that would limit his ability to investigate the mortgage crisis. Meanwhile, a spokesman for Harris said the attorney general believes that the current settlement proposal is inadequate for Californians.

Despite Obama's announcements, California House Democrats on Wednesday asked to meet with him to appeal for more aggressive action to deal with foreclosures, including putting in place a plan to reduce the principal on underwater mortgages.

"We've met with everybody else in the administration with no satisfaction that they fully understand the magnitude of this problem with respect to the families that we represent," Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez) said.

jim.puzzanghera@latimes.com

alejandro.lazo@latimes.com

Staff writer Richard Simon contributed to this report.

Sales Stir Hope for Housing Market

2012-01-27T18:54:00.000-08:00

Sales of previously owned homes rose in December for the third straight month, bringing the supply of homes listed for sale to the lowest level since 2006 and offering a glimmer of hope that the housing market could be starting to climb out of a profound downturn.

Existing-home sales increased 5% in December from a month earlier, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.61 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. Lawrence Yun, the Realtors' chief economist, called the December gain "a good finish to a very tough year."

Many economists had predicted that 2011 would be the worst year on record for existing home sales, but the year ended with 4.26 million sales, about 1.6% higher than the 4.19 million existing homes sold in 2010. Market-watchers attributed this to a minor surge in sales at year-end, driven by historically low mortgage rates, falling prices, active investor-buyers and increasing consumer confidence.

Still, economists cautioned that it's too early to assume that the market is recovering. "These were positive numbers, but that doesn't mean the market is getting better. Lenders have been trying to get rid of distressed homes, and investors been snapping them up," said Patrick Newport, chief economist at IHS Global Insight. According to the Realtors report, investors purchased 21% of all homes in December, up from 19% in November.

The inventory of homes for sale declined in December to 2.38 million, the equivalent of a 6.2-month supply, assuming the pace of sales remain at December's level. A six-month supply of homes typically is considered healthy, although NAR's numbers don't take into account the "shadow inventory" of homes that are either in foreclosure or on bank balance sheets and not yet listed for sale.

Prices, meanwhile, continue to fall. The median price in December was $164,500, down 2.5% from a year earlier. Prices were down in all regions except the West, where prices rose slightly, compared with a year ago. For all of 2011, the median was $166,100, the lowest since 2002.

"What you really want to see is sales going up, inventories going down, and prices going up, not down," said David Semmens, an economist with Standard Chartered. "People still feel they can hold off buying a house because the recovery won't be that aggressive. It's still very much a buyer's market."

That buyer's market allowed Andrew Gonzales, a 24-year-old police officer in Santa Fe, N.M., to be picky about price when looking for a home for himself and his three-year-old daughter. He closed last month on a $132,000, three-bedroom home in Rio Rancho, a suburb of Albuquerque, after the price was cut twice. Just before closing, the home was appraised for $18,000 higher than the sales price, at $150,000, by a private appraiser.

"I got tired of paying rent, and I'm a single father, so I wanted a home for my daughter," he said. "I was just waiting for the price to come down."

Vision Equity, a company that buys foreclosed homes at auctions in Indianapolis, stepped up the volume of its purchases this winter, buying about 45 homes a month in October, November and December, compared with about 30 homes a month last summer.

"There's a lot of cash investor activity right now," said Steve Olson, a spokesman for Vision Equity. "The chatter at the courthouse was, there's going to be a lot more product coming on the market, and the pricing is going to be good for investors. And we prepared our own investors for that."

Write to Robbie Whelan at Robbie.Whelan@wsj.com

By ROBBIE WHELAN

2012-01-25T09:58:00.000-08:00

SANTA BARBARA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS
2011 Real Estate Year in Review

Something happened last fall here in Santa Barbara. Real estate prices for houses took another dip. Not huge, mind you, but significant. The median price for houses in Santa Barbara’s South Coast dropped from $815,000 at the end of the third quarter 2011 to $790,000 at year end 2011. That’s a 3% decline in three months. That wasn’t indicative of the rest of the year, as the median house price dropped just 4.1% for the prior nine months. What happened this last quarter? What does it mean for 2012? To many of us working in the field, this decline appeared out of place. All of a sudden there were three or four tract houses listed in Goleta for $399,000. (Turns out all three had significant foundation issues, but still.) Then there were homes listed in other Santa Barbara, Goleta, and Carpinteria neighborhoods, mostly short sales, in the $450,000 range. And these were livable! Can you imagine being able to buy a two‐ or three‐bedroom house in the Santa Barbara area for under a half million? A house with a working roof, good foundation, fenced yard, and in a residential neighborhood. We’re not talking about the little fixer perched under the electrical wires or adjacent to the cement factory; we’re talking decent houses in decent neighborhoods. All of a sudden, the cost of home ownership was neck‐and‐neck with the cost of renting, maybe even less expensive with the tax considerations. Interest rates for 30‐year fixed mortgages were hovering around 4.0%, and lenders had loan programs with as little as 3.5%, 5%, and 10% down (and still do).

Sellers who owed more on their mortgage than the property was worth were aggressively pricing their homes to submit a short‐sale offer to their lender (a much better option for many sellers than foreclosure). Other sellers in the neighborhood needed to adjust prices to compete with these short‐sale homes. Bank‐owned homes were also priced aggressively in this under‐$500,000 market. This remarkable perfect‐storm for buyers hasn’t been seen in Santa Barbara for nearly two decades. Can you imagine what happened next?

The buyers came out in force, especially for houses. The number of pending sales (new transactions that opened escrow) in December 2011 totaled 102, as seen in Table 1. This is a 62% increase over the number of pending sales in December of the prior year. November had 102 pending sales, and October had 104 homes that entered escrow that month. This is what we’re accustomed to in our best selling seasons, spring and summer, not in the fall and winter months. It’s not all rosy for buyers, however. The competition for these homes is steep. Most of the well‐priced homes had multiple offers (two, three, or sometimes more buyers bidding on the same home). Short‐sale sellers on Del Monaco dropped their price to $449,900 in late October, which immediately generated three offers. A cute two‐bedroom house on the Westside on Clearview listed recently for $630,000 – a normal sale ‐‐ and had ten offers within the first five days (and sold for over asking price). That left nine buyers out in the cold, hunting for another good value. Sometimes misguided sellers price their underwater property way below market value, as was the case for a two‐bedroom Highlands condo recently. The $299,000 list price generated a flurry of offers, but once reviewed, the short‐sale lender countered with a price $50,000 higher (substantiated by their appraisal) and rejected the offers. Although buyers occasionally get lucky and a low‐ball bid gets accepted by the bank‐seller, more often than not, the banks do know the value of the property and counter at or just below market value. Table 2 shows the combined number of pending sales for both houses and condos. (Remember most of the new activity has been for houses; pending condo sales actually decreased in December after taking a jump in November.) The time span from negotiating a purchase contract to closing escrow can be 30 to 90 days (or longer for short sales), so the bump up in closed sales in December reflects this jump in pending sales (contracts signed) in October and November.

Like other industries, we call the available number of homes for sale “inventory.” At the end of December, we had just 3.9 months of inventory in our whole south coast market (3.8 months for houses and 4.1 months for condos), see Table 1. Economists tell us that an inventory of about six months is balanced between buyers and sellers. An inventory of less than six months eventually puts upward pressure on prices (and is a seller’s market); an inventory of over six months puts downward pressure on prices (and is considered a buyer’s market). Our inventories have been low this entire last quarter of 2011 in all areas except Montecito and Hope Ranch. Look again at Table 1 at the Months of Inventory column. Both Goleta and Santa Barbara houses have inventories of around 2.5 months! It makes sense that with all the buyers out there, prices at the lower end will start to rise, and favor sellers. We are not seeing this yet, but we are seeing more price stability (especially in condos right now), and plenty of frustrated potential home buyers. Stay tuned to this column to see if the current buying frenzy at the lower end of our market translates into higher prices in next few months. Table 3 reflects these figures, showing which price ranges logged the most sales: $500,000 to $600,000 for houses, and $300,000 to $400,000 for condos.

The upper end of our market, defined in our charts by Montecito and Hope Ranch, has more inventory, 12.3 months and 8.5 months, respectively. This is nearly identical to December 2010. Median price for a Montecito home dropped year over year from $2,400,000 to $2,100,000, a 12.5% decline. Hope Ranch median price for 2011 is $1,950,000, down from $2,212,500, an 11.6% decline. Remember, though, that only part of the median price calculation is due to declining values. The other variable is the mix of home prices. More homes sold at the lower end and fewer at the upper end brings down the median price.

Condo prices are holding steady with just a 1.6% decline in the fourth quarter 2011 (from $425,000 to $418,000 after hovering near $425,000 for several months), and a 3.7% drop year over year.

This analysis would not be complete for 2011 if we didn’t also look at distressed sales, that is, the number of closed escrows that are short sales or bank‐owned properties (foreclosures). The number of short sales that closed in 2011 totaled 200. In 2010, this number was 137 (and in 2009, it was 92). More and more sellers are becoming aware of the benefits of a short sale, and are choosing that option. As for bank‐owned properties (REOs), Santa Barbara saw 184 close escrow in 2011, as compared to 154 in 2010 and 165 in 2009. The total number of all sales, regular and distressed, in our south coast is consistent year‐over year, with 1,257 residential properties changing hands in 2011 (2.5% more than last year’s 1,227). Therefore, the percentage of homes sold that are distressed has increased to 30.5% from 2010’s 23.7%.

My recommendation for sellers who have a “normal” property to sell: since many of the distressed homes are in poor condition or unkempt, make your house stand out by staging it and giving it a thorough cleaning – make it shine. Be flexible on your closing date and other timelines, and be willing to make repairs. Not all buyers are willing or able to work with the peculiar timelines and demands of purchasing a distressed property and might pay a premium to buy a home from a “real” seller. If a buyer needs to move in by a certain date, or needs a house in move‐in condition, that buyer would be best served by purchasing a “normal” sale; cater to that buyer.

What does all this foretell for 2012? Philosophers are quick to prophesy about the year 2012 based on ancient history. Our recent history would be a better guide. With an increase in distressed sales lowering property values across the board and a flurry of buyers who realize now is the time to buy, I predict a steady pace of sales in 2012. The number of sales will be limited by the low inventory, and buyers will continue to compete for the best deals, but be reluctant to overpay. Sellers will have to compete with others who are underwater and trying to beat the foreclosure clock with a low listing price, and with bank‐owned properties. Prices will rise slightly at the lower end, and stabilize in the middle and high‐end markets.

As we enter this much‐prophesied year of 2012, I’d like to propose a new idea. Psychology has long recognized the power of self‐fulfilling prophecy (a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior [Wikipedia].) For example, if you think the real estate market is going to tank, then you won’t purchase a home (and if you’re an expressive type, tell others why they shouldn’t either) – which, if enough people feel the same way, will slow home sales and contribute to that original prediction. If you think that we’re at the bottom in prices and interest rates, and now is the best time to buy because both are going to go up, then you will figure out a way to purchase, as well as talk to others about the great opportunities in real estate, which, you guessed it, contributes to the number of sales and raises prices (thus helping to fulfill the original expectation). Economists measure something called the “consumer confidence index” (CCI), which is the degree of optimism on the state of the economy that consumers are expressing through their activities of savings and spending. Businesses make decisions to expand or contract, offer products or not, and economists make their predictions based partly on this index — that is, on our expectations of what the economy (or the real estate market) will do.

What if, in 2012, we all predicted – expected — a stable, even sustainable, real estate market? What if we predicted that the unsustainable highs and lows of the last decade are coming to a close, and a new era is beginning? Real estate has not always been a commodity, and perhaps if we collectively begin to look at it as a long‐term investment, and a place to call home (or provide others with a home), we will begin to act in such a way to make that prophecy come to light in 2012.

-Kalia J. Rork Prudential California Realty

Home sales improve nationally in December

2012-01-24T09:58:00.000-08:00

Home sales rose nationally in December, marking the third consecutive month that the market has shown improvement.

Previously owned homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.61 million units, up 5.0% from November and 3.6% from December a year prior, according to the National Assn. of Realtors.

“The market for single-family homes picked up in the second half of 2011, after being stuck near the bottom for nearly three years,” Patrick Newport, an economist with IHS Global Insight, wrote in a note. “This pickup is real, but the road to recovery will be a slow one.”

About one in three homes sold last month was a so-called distressed sale, either a foreclosure or a short sale, the latter involving a bank allowing a home to be sold for less than the outstanding debt on the property. Roughly one in three homes was purchased in cash.

The nation’s housing inventory dropped 9.2% from the prior month, to 2.38 million homes available for sale. That represents a supply of six months and a little less than a week. Economists consider about six months of supply to be a stable market.

By Alejandro Lazo

January 20, 2012, 10:49 a.m.

Click here for the article in the LA Times

Santa Barbara End of the Year Sales Report

2012-01-24T09:41:00.000-08:00

Click HERE to view the report in full size.

Scheduled foreclosure auctions soar in California

2011-12-16T13:38:00.000-08:00

Banks set the clock for forced sales of more than 26,000 homes in the state in November, a 63% increase from October. Overall foreclosure notices nationwide fell last month.

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

December 15, 2011

Banks in November scheduled more than 26,000 homes to be sold at California foreclosure auctions, a 63% increase from October and a sign that a surge in discounted, bank-owned properties is on track to hit the market next year.

The uptick in scheduled auctions follows an increase last summer in homes entering the foreclosure process by receiving default notices and was largely driven by Bank of America. It appears that many of those homes are now quickly working their way through the process, said Daren Blomquist, a spokesman for RealtyTrac of Irvine, a data tracker that published the November data.

The increase played out nationally, hitting a nine-month high, even as overall foreclosure notices declined last month. Among the states, California had the biggest month-over-month increase in scheduled auctions, followed by Washington, 56%; Ohio, 53%; New Jersey, 44%; and New York, 38%.

"November's numbers suggest a new set of incoming foreclosure waves, many of which may roll into the market as [foreclosures] or short sales sometime early next year," said James Saccacio, co-founder and chief executive of RealtyTrac.

Nationally, overall foreclosure filings on U.S. properties — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — totaled 224,394 in November, down 3% from October and off 14% from November 2010. About 1 in 579 homes received a foreclosure filing last month, by RealtyTrac's tally.

Celia Chen, a housing economist with Moody's Analytics, said she expected the number of foreclosures on banks' books to rise next year and for the number of discounted foreclosures on the market to remain elevated. That will continue to put pressure on home prices.

"The pace of sales will remain very slow, so the share of distressed sales is going to rise most likely through the middle of next year, and this will cause home prices to fall," Chen said. "Job growth is still weak, and then it is still a bit difficult to get those low rates. Lenders, in general, are still being pretty careful about who they write a mortgage for."

The West's Foreclosure Belt continued to be the hardest hit region in the nation. Nevada posted the highest foreclosure rate in the nation for the 59th month in a row, despite a decline in foreclosure activity because of a new law cracking down on those doing the foreclosing. California had the second-highest rate and Arizona the third in November.

California cities accounted for nine of the 10 metro areas with the highest foreclosure rates. Las Vegas was the only city outside of California in the top 10, coming in at No. 6. Stockton posted the nation's highest foreclosure rate for the second month in a row, followed by Modesto and Fresno.

In California, total foreclosure activity was up 15% from October and up 11% from November 2010. The number of homes entering foreclosure continued at an elevated level last month, down just 1% from October and up 12% from November 2010. Notices of trustee sales, or scheduled auctions, jumped 63% month over month and 14% over November 2010. Bank repossessions declined 15% from the previous month and were up 1% from the same month last year.

The uptick in California filings was driven by the auction notices. When such a notice is filed at a county recorder's office, a home can be sold within 21 days.

2012 Mortgage delinquencies seen dropping sharply

2011-12-15T11:27:00.000-08:00

By EILEEN AJ CONNELLY, AP Personal Finance Writer

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

(12-07) 07:05 PST New York (AP) --

If the U.S. economy does not suffer more setbacks, the rate of mortgage holders behind on their payments should decline significantly by the end of next year, according to credit reporting agency TransUnion.
Mortgage delinquency rates — the ratio of borrowers 60 or more days behind on their payments — will likely tick up to about 6 percent through the first three months of 2012, TransUnion said in its annual delinquency forecast issued Wednesday.

But by the end of next year, it could drop to 5 percent, TransUnion said.

That's well off the peak of 6.89 percent seen in the fourth quarter of 2009.
Chicago-based TransUnion's forecast takes into consideration several factors, including expectations that consumer confidence and the economy will improve next year.

Also, banks are expected to get a good portion of pending foreclosures off their books next year, said Charlie Wise, TransUnion director of research and consulting.

Banks are still working through a backlog of foreclosures created by issues including the robo-signing scandal, in which bank officials signed mortgage documents without verifying the information they contained. The issue surfaced last year in areas with large numbers of foreclosures, and banks had to backtrack and review foreclosures across the country to make sure their paperwork was in order.

That slowed down the process, Wise said, and left mortgages listed as delinquent for longer than they otherwise might have been, temporarily boosting delinquency rates.

Economic uncertainty has also contributed. In the third quarter of 2011, mortgage delinquencies saw their first uptick in six quarters, largely fueled by concerns over the economy as lawmakers were debating the U.S. debt ceiling and Europe's debt crisis was unfolding.

Helping to cut the mortgage delinquency rate are a slowly improving job market and a stabilizing housing market.

While the drop will be significant, the rate will remain well above the pre-recession average of 1.5 to 2 percent. "We have a long way to go to get back," said Steven Chaouki, a TransUnion vice president.

The situation with credit cards is much stronger. Card delinquencies — payments late by 90 days or more — dropped to their lowest levels in 17 years during the spring, then saw a slight increase in the third quarter, but still remained near historic lows.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2011/12/06/national/a210622S66.DTL#ixzz1gdJoL1WP

Barclays analyst sees housing rebound coming in 2012

2011-12-08T18:33:00.001-08:00

by KERRI PANCHUK

Monday, December 5th, 2011, 11:34 am

Barclays Capital (BCS: 11.20 -6.90%) analyst Stephen Kim predicts a housing recovery buoyed by improving jobs numbers and the fact prices for nondistressed homes will have stabilized without government support.

"In the absence of a government homebuyer incentives, prices for non-distressed home sales have stabilized for almost a year," Kim said. "This is the most important trend in the housing industry right now, and we are amazed at how little attention it has been getting from the media and the street. This stability on the part of nondistressed prices has occurred despite a very high share of distressed activity and continued declines in overall prices."

Barclays said recent economic data — including higher job creation in November, housing starts and improved homebuyer traffic — point to some improvement potential in the sector.
In mid-2010, the federal homebuyer tax credit expired, leaving the housing market without training wheels for the first time since the 2008 economic meltdown. Yet, prices in some housing markets remained stable on the back end.

With its new outlook in the market, Barclays upgraded D.R. Horton's (DHI: 12.23 -3.62%) stock to buy and raised price targets for D.R. Horton, Lennar (LEN: 19.02 -2.96%), Toll Brothers (TOL: 20.39 -2.58%) and Meritage Homes(MTH: 22.39 -3.20%).
At the same time, the investment bank raised its 2012 earnings-per-share estimates for D.R. Horton, Lennar, Meritage Homes, Pulte (PHM: 6.07 -5.89%) and Toll Brothers, while lowering its estimates for KB Home (KBH: 7.89 -3.43%).

"Thus, the key to timing housing’s recovery depends primarily on when these first-time buyers decide it is safe to buy a house," Kim concluded.

Consumer Confidence on the Rise?

2011-12-02T10:28:00.001-08:00

Consumer confidence improved in November. Please click here to read more.

Pending Home Sales Jump in October

2011-12-02T10:03:00.001-08:00

Washington, DC, November 30, 2011Pending home sales rose strongly in October and remain above year-ago levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

The Pending Home Sales Index,* a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, surged 10.4 percent to 93.3 in October from 84.5 in September and is 9.2 percent above October 2010 when it stood at 85.5. The data reflects contracts but not closings.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said improved contract activity is a hopeful sign. “Home sales have been plodding along at a sub-par level while interest rates are hovering at record lows and there is a pent-up demand from buyers who normally would have entered the market in recent years. We hope this is indicates more buyers are taking advantage of the excellent affordability conditions,” he said.

“Many consumers are recognizing that home buyers in the past two years have had one of the lowest default rates in history. Moreover, continued inventory declines are another healthy sign for the housing market,” Yun added.

The PHSI in the Northeast surged 17.7 percent to 71.3 in October and is 3.4 percent above October 2010. In the Midwest the index jumped 24.1 percent to 88.7 in October and remains 13.2 percent above a year ago. Pending home sales in the South rose 8.6 percent in October to an index of 99.5 and are 9.7 percent higher than October 2010. In the West the index slipped 0.3 percent to 105.5 in October but is 8.1 percent above a year ago.

“Although contract signings are up, not all contracts lead to closings. Many potential home buyers inadvertently hurt their credit scores and chances of getting a mortgage through easily averted actions, such as cancelling an old credit line while taking on a new one,” Yun said. “Such actions could unwittingly prevent buyers from obtaining a mortgage if their credit score is close the margins of qualifying, or they might get a loan but with less favorable terms.”

NAR encourages consumers to be aware of their credit score and actions which could hurt or enhance it. HouseLogic.com, the association’s consumer website devoted to all aspects of homeownership, offers tips for improving credit scores athttp://buyandsell.houselogic.com/articles/7-tips-improving-your-credit/.

The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

The index is based on a large national sample, typically representing about 20 percent of transactions for existing-home sales. In developing the model for the index, it was demonstrated that the level of monthly sales-contract activity parallels the level of closed existing-home sales in the following two months.

An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, which was the first year to be examined as well as the first of five consecutive record years for existing-home sales; it coincides with a level that is historically healthy.

NOTE: Existing-home sales for November will be reported December 21 and the next Pending Home Sales Index will be released December 29; release times are at 10:00 a.m. EST.

Information about NAR is available at www.realtor.org. This and other news releases are posted in the News Media section. Statistical data in this release, other tables and surveys also may be found by clicking on Research.

REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark which may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics. Not all real estate agents are REALTORS®. All REALTORS® are members of NAR.

The Sky’s the (Loan) Limit

2011-11-25T10:49:00.001-08:00

On November 18, 2011,By Gary Thomas, 2012 President-Elect, National Association of REALTORS®

I have some great news to share with everyone! Last night Congress voted to restore loan limits and the maximum cap for Federal Housing Administration loans. Their action reinstates the loan limit at 125 percent of area median price up to $729,750 for two years and extends the National Flood Insurance Program until December 16th, with no lapse.

This is good news! Higher loan limits will make mortgages more accessible for hard-working middle-class families throughout the country. In fact, nearly two-thirds of buyers who will be helped by the loan limits extension have incomes below $100,000. On flood insurance, the extension until December 16th ensures no lapse, but we still need to push for Congress to pass the five-year reauthorization. Contact your representative to reauthorize NFIP for five more years.

Opponents of higher loan limits mistakenly argue that only wealthy borrowers benefit from the maximum cost limits. But in 2010, the FHA was used by 56 percent of all first-time homebuyers, and 85 percent of borrowers obtaining homes at the higher loan limits had incomes below $150,000. In addition, 60 percent of all African-American and Hispanic homebuyers used FHA.

The truth is that it actually depends a lot on where in the country the borrower lives. Geography often dictates what the price of “affordable housing” is. Last month’s reset to 115 percent impacted 669 counties in 42 states and territories, with an average loan limit reduction of more than $68,000. We support giving middle-class borrowers the same access to affordable mortgage financing, no matter where they make their home.

For example, many people think of California as a high cost state, and there are many areas where it is. San Francisco will benefit because many middle class homes bump up against the $729,750 limit. What many people don’t know is there are many counties in California that are not considered high cost and will benefit. Take Fresno County, for example, prices will go from $281,750 to $311,250 to qualify. As you can see, this really benefits consumers no matter where they live.

Statistics for last year show a decline in mortgages for higher priced homes, in spite of historically low interest rates. This suggests that sales in the higher-priced portion of the markets were stymied relative to the lower price ranges during the period leading up to the change in the conforming loan limits. This negatively impacted our businesses at the very worst time.

Yet, not long ago, the effort to reinstate the loan limits was dead in the water. Several members of Congress let us know it would never happen. But we didn’t give up. We showed Congress what REALTORS® are made of—strength and grit! We sent out a Call for Action on both these matters, and we had an impressive response from members. And you know what? Congress listened! That’s why these Calls for Action are so important, and I thank you for your overwhelming response.

Those of you who answered the call helped make a difference, and I urge you to keep up the good work by continuing to respond when asked. And be sure to answer the call for action to reauthorize NFIP, if you haven’t already. Again, thanks for your help!

Rich Neighborhoods Riddled With Foreclosures

2011-11-23T10:55:00.001-08:00

By Morgan Brennan, Forbes.comNovember 16, 2011
Victoria Gotti, the reality TV star and daughter of infamous mob don John Gotti, made headlines in 2009 as the latest high-profile homeowner facing foreclosure. According to the New York Post, Zillow.com and others, she had stopped making mortgage payments to lender JP Morgan on her Long Island, N.Y., estate, which she had put up for sale the prior year, finding no takers at an asking price of $3.9 million. The home, in the tony neighborhood of Old Westbury, originally cost close to $4.1 million. Two years later, she’s still in the house–now listed for $2.9 million.

She’s hardly alone, of course. Millions of American homeowners have faced foreclosure over the past several years and roughly 11 million more remain significantly underwater on their mortgages. About 7.7% of all mortgages nationwide are in trouble, either seriously delinquent or already in foreclosure. But somewhat surprisingly, ritzy ZIP codes like Gotti’s Old Westbury 11586 aren’t immune. Far from it. According to LPS Applied Analytics, 6.5%, or 33 out of the 516 active loans in her area are in some stage of delinquency. In nearby Great Neck, the default rate is even higher. Of the active home loans in the peninsula enclave, 7.2% are in some stage of foreclosure or pre-foreclosure.

We asked LPS Applied Analytics, a unit of Lender Processing Services that publishes the monthly Mortgage Monitor report, to pull the foreclosure statistics for the priciest neighborhoods in America. Using Forbes’ 2011 list of the Most Expensive ZIP Codes, the folks at LPS Applied Analytics calculated the number of defaulted loans against the total number of active loans – which include everything from subprime loans to conventional loans to jumbo prime loans (and even complicated nontraditional financing, which undergoes the foreclosure process the same way as a traditional mortgage) – in America’s 100 most expensive ZIP codes.

Where It’s Worst

The result? Perhaps not surprisingly, hard-hit Florida led our list. It has two higher end hoods in top spots: Fisher Island (No. 1) and Rosemary Beach (No. 3). Fisher Island, the Miami Beach multimillionaire enclave and the 43rd most expensive ZIP code in the country, has a whopping 20.5% foreclosure rate, with 38 out of 184 active loans in default. Rosemary Beach, a posh planned community in the panhandle and the 69th most expensive ZIP code, clocks in at 9.9%, with 10 out of 104 homes in default.

Record numbers of foreclosures have translated into price depreciations of 50% or more in many parts of the state, pushing yet more underwater homeowners into foreclosure. “The rates in Florida have been among the highest for a very long time now so I think it’s emblematic of that,” says Herb Blecher, vice president of LPS Applied Analytics. A number of high-profile Florida owners have been among the state’s default ranks, including comedian Chris Tucker, who owes more than $4.4 million on a $6 million mansion currently assessed at $1.6 million, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Walking Away

So why do the rich face foreclosures? Loss of income, of course, is the biggest reason. But analysts say they’re seeing a rise in the number of well-off property owners who stop paying their mortgages for calculated financial reasons. “Strategic defaults can be an even bigger issue with higher-end homes, where if you’re 25% underwater that could mean hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, because the borrowers may be more financially shrewd and consider it a financial decision to walk away from the home,” explains Daren Blomquist of RealtyTrac.

He also notes that foreclosures among high-end homeowners have been rising for some time: a study conducted by Realtytrac last year from January to October revealed that defaults on million dollar and higher loans has risen 335% from 2007 through 2010, compared with a 128% rise for all categories of loans at all price points. And LPS Applied Analytics data shows that trend holding steady through this year, with jumbo mortgage delinquencies remaining nearly 300% higher than 2008 rates.

Why are foreclosures ratcheting up in these expensive enclaves? When the reason is strategic default, it’s usually because wealthier people can’t necessarily qualify for a short sale or a loan modification thanks to too much income on the books, explains Chad Ruyle, co-founder of Youwalkaway.com, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based site specializing in strategic defaults. He says the company has helped a number of well-to-do clients since its inception in 2008. “Today we have had a couple celebrities that have randomly contacted us who want to foreclose,” says Ruyle, declining to disclose identities. “The stigma around default has really changed and people are starting to see it for what it is – a business transaction with the bank.”

Here are five of the wealthiest places in America that are riddled with foreclosures:

#5 Great Neck/Kings Point, N.Y. | 11024
50th most expensive ZIP code
Foreclosure Percentage: 7.2%
Number of foreclosures: 81
Total number of active loans: 1,120

#4 Kilauea, Hawaii | 96754
90th most expensive ZIP code
Foreclosure Percentage: 9.4%
Number of foreclosures: 62
Total number of active loans: 658

#3 Rosemary Beach, Fla. | 32461
69th most expensive ZIP code
Foreclosure Percentage: 9.9%
Number of foreclosures: 10
Total number of active loans: 268

#2 Alpine, N.J. | 07620
Top most expensive ZIP code
Foreclosure Percentage: 10.1%
Number of foreclosures: 27
Total number of active loans: 268

#1 Fisher Island, Fla. | 33109
43rd most expensive ZIP code
Foreclosure Percentage: 20.5%
Number of foreclosures: 38
Total number of active loans: 184

Foreclosure Activity Increases for Third Straight Month

2011-11-17T10:11:00.001-08:00

BY: CARRIE BAY

Foreclosure filings in October rose 7 percent from the previous month, RealtyTrac reported Thursday. Including default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions – which all increased month-

over-month – filings were reported on 230,678 U.S. properties in October.

That grand total is down nearly 31 percent from a year earlier, when servicers began putting the brakes on foreclosure actions due to paperwork issues. But RealtyTrac has documented a rise in filings for three consecutive months now – a sign that servicers are working through the backlog of cases that

have been delayed.

While the October numbers indicate unpaid mortgages are finally making their way through the pipeline, James Saccacio, RealtyTrac’s CEO, says he’s concerned other forces at work could throw a

wrench in foreclosure processing.

“[R]ecent state court rulings and new state laws keep changing the rules of the foreclosure game on the fly,” Saccacio said, “creating more uncertainty in the housing market and threatening to prolong the

road to a robust real estate recovery.”

Nevada is one example of a change in foreclosure rules. It saw a 34 percent decrease in filings, driven by a new state law that took effect in October and requires lenders to sign and record an affidavit with

key information about any pending foreclosure.

The foreclosure hotbed of Las Vegas recorded a 36 percent decrease in overall foreclosure activity, caused by an 80 percent drop in new default notices from September to October. Las Vegas had held onto the title of highest metro foreclosure rate for 22 consecutive months, but with October’s decline, it

slipped to the No. 5 spot.

The 1,201 new defaults in the whole state of Nevada last month was its lowest since June 2006. Even with the sharp drop-off in activity, Nevada posted the nation’s highest state foreclosure rate for the 58th

straight month.

Defaults in California, Florida, and Michigan – on the other hand – all rose to their highest levels in at

least a year.

California default notices increased 17 percent from the previous month to 29,240, pushing the state’s

foreclosure rate to the second highest in the nation.

A sharp monthly increase in both new default notices and scheduled auctions boosted the foreclosure rate in Florida to fourth highest among the states. A total of 15,234 new default notices were reported in Florida last month, up 28 percent from the previous month. Scheduled auctions in Florida hit 10,655 in

October, up 57 percent from September.

New default notices in Michigan also reached a 12-month high, increasing 13 percent from the previous

month. The state posted the nation’s fifth highest foreclosure rate for in October.

Wedged in there at No. 3 was Arizona. Total foreclosure activity there increased nearly 18 percent from

the previous month, but was still down 36 percent from October of last year.

Other states with foreclosure rates ranking among the top 10 were Georgia, Illinois, Idaho, Oregon, and Colorado.

-DSnews.com

California attorney general's office subpoenas Fannie, Freddie

2011-11-17T09:56:00.001-08:00

Information is sought on the mortgage giants' roles as landlords who own thousands of foreclosed properties in California. Also sought are details of their mortgage-servicing and home-repossession practices, a source says.

By Alejandro Lazo and Jim Puzzanghera, Los Angeles Times

November 16, 2011, 6:27 p.m.

Reporting from L.A. and Washington—

Investigators with the California attorney general's office have subpoenaed information from mortgage titans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as part of a wide-ranging inquiry into lending and foreclosure practices in the state.

The subpoenas ask the government-controlled finance companies to answer a series of questions about their activities in California, including their roles as landlords who own thousands of foreclosed properties. The attorney general's office is also seeking details of Fannie and Freddie's mortgage-servicing and home-repossession practices, according to a person familiar with the matter.

In addition, investigators want to learn more about the companies' purchases and sponsorship of securities holding "toxic mortgages" in the Golden State, said the person, who was not authorized to speak on the matter and requested anonymity.

Fannie and Freddie declined to comment on the investigation. Shum Preston, a spokesman for state Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris, also declined to comment.

Edward Mills, a financial policy analyst at FBR Capital Markets & Co., said Harris has been the most aggressive state attorney general in trying to assist those borrowers who are "underwater" on their mortgages, owing more on their properties than they are worth.

The move to open an investigation into Fannie and Freddie, Mills said, is a creative way to potentially force policy changes from the mortgage giants over the objections of their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency in Washington, which is headed by Ed DeMarco.

"She's felt that Ed DeMarco has not done enough to help homeowners and has undue influence over what changes are put in place at Fannie and Freddie," Mills said. "If he's not going to make those changes, she's going to force those through the courts."

The California investigation comes as DeMarco and the chief executives of the two companies faced bipartisan outrage this week over multimillion-dollar salaries and large bonuses at the housing finance giants, which still owe the government a combined $150 billion in the largest financial crisis bailout.

Harris this month pushed for Fannie and Freddie to allow more principal reduction, which is the writing down of the loan balances of troubled borrowers.

"If Mr. DeMarco is unwilling to support principal reduction for these home loans in crisis, he should step aside for someone who will," Harris said.

DeMarco, in turn, said Wednesday during his congressional testimony that the agency has determined that reducing principal on loans owned by Fannie and Freddie is not "the least-cost approach for the taxpayer" to keep homeowners from foreclosure. In addition, those reductions are not authorized under the law that allowed the firms to be seized, DeMarco added.

"I do believe we are taking all due effort to provide assistance to homeowners, and I do not believe I've been authorized to use taxpayer money for a general program of principal forgiveness," DeMarco told lawmakers.

According to the person familiar with California's investigation, the central question posed by the California investigators is: To what extent did the two mortgage giants contribute to the foreclosure crisis in California?

Fannie and Freddie hold a vast number of loans in California. The major banks that are employed to act on their behalf — collecting payments from borrowers, foreclosing or evicting borrowers or striking deals with homeowners to modify their mortgages — must adhere to their guidelines.

Harris has made investigating the foreclosure crisis and mortgage meltdown a priority during her first year in office, creating a Mortgage Fraud Strike Force this year. More recently, she has stepped out of negotiations with the nation's five largest banks, conducted on behalf of state attorneys general across the U.S., saying that the banks were asking for too much legal release in return for too little aid to California borrowers.

The subpoenas, issued Tuesday, deal only with Fannie's and Freddie's activities in California. But the investigation could lead other states to look into the firms' operations, said Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance.

"If for some reason California would be successful in any of this, it certainly would encourage other states to go after them because every state has Fannie and Freddie mortgages," Cecala said.

The two mortgage giants are responsible for about 40% of home loans in the U.S., according to Inside Mortgage Finance.

"I think that this is at least partially an attempt to penetrate that bubble which is hanging over half the market," Cecala said. "The servicers, the big banks they are dealing with and negotiating with, have no control over the loans that are guaranteed and effectively owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; the major banks are just third-party contractors when it comes to those."

Housing: A time to buy

2011-11-15T19:59:00.001-08:00

This is a very informative and thorough article about the state of the housing market. It is a bit lengthy but well worth the read. Please click here to read "Housing: A time to buy" written by Dr. David Kelly and David Lebovitz

Sales in Santa Barbara - October 2011

2011-11-10T10:52:00.000-08:00

Carpinteria

(REO)$185,000 4634 Ninth St

$192,000 5951 Birch St 1

$200,000 5936 Birch St 1

$203,000 7015 Gobernador Cyn

$282,000 6048 Jacaranda Way F

(REO) $350,000 1260 Franciscan Ct 11

$385,500 1413 Sterling Ave

$420,000 1484 Noma St

$520,000 4655 Aragon Dr

$615,000 1098 Linden Ave

$645,000 1477 La Jolla Pl

$1,100,000 7410 Shepard Mesa Rd

$424,792 Avg. Price
$367,750 Median Price
12 Sales

Goleta

(REO)$210,000 31 Dearborn Pl 34

(REO)$230,000 5516 Armitos Ave 79

$258,000 7105 Monique Ct

$300,000 6864 Silver Fern Ct

$325,000 7636 Hollister Ave 259

$363,000 534 Mills Way

(REO)$380,000 7017 Marymount Way

$425,000 107 Cardinal Ave

(REO)$460,000 688 La Roda Ave

(REO)$474,000 581 Poppyfield Pl

$480,000 5134 Calle Real B

$520,000 6245 Momouth Ave

(REO)$525,000 62 Touran Ln

(REO)$545,000 121 Santa Ana Ave

$557,000 523 Inwood Dr

(Reo)$632,000 7952 Winchester Cir

(Reo)$635,000 5155 Tabano Way

(Reo)$650,000 7938 Winchester Cir

$660,000 7319 Greensboro St

$687,000 5083 Parkwood Pl

$715,000 5304 Orchard Park Ln

$740,000 4976 La Ramada Dr

$750,000 5133 Walnut Park Dr

$825,000 6828 Shadowbrook Dr

$830,000 455 Orange Blossom Ln

$930,000 6784 Sueno Rd

$1,048,000 416 Mills Way

$561,259 Avg. Price
$545,000 Median Price
27 Sales

Montecito

$253,000 1125 Westmont Rd

$792,500 755 Circle Dr

$890,000 1355 Santa Clara Wy

$944,000 696 Cowles Rd

$1,060,000 116 Palm Tree Ln

$1,200,000 1368 East Valley Rd

$1,200,000 677 Orchard Ave

$1,550,000 950 Arcady Rd

$2,210,000 660 Randall Rd

$2,300,000 433 Alcala Ln

$3,300,000 275 Olive Mill Rd

$1,427,227 Avg. Price
$1,200,000 Median Price
11 Sales

Santa Barbara

$198,500 220 W Canon Perdido

(REO)$313,000 325 Ladera St 4

$325,000 1233 Richelle Ln G

$331,500 2113 Castillo #A

$340,000 1231 Stonecreek Rd D

(REO)$365,000 3663 San Remo Dr #5a

(REO)$375,000 1305 Cacique St

(REO)$375,000 2626 Calle Real

$380,000 551 E Montecito St

$380,000 557 E Montecito St

(REO)$383,000 1600 Garden St 18

$395,000 577 E Montecito St

$401,000 1709 Sycamore Cyn Rd

(REO)$405,000 433 E Micheltorena St

$410,000 535 E Montecito St

(REO)$425,000 431 E Carrillo St

$426,000 565 E Montecito St

$445,500 579 E Montecito St

(REO)$460,500 3943 Camellia Ln

$470,000 1010 N Nopal St

$475,000 222 Reef Ct

$483,500 452 Fellowship Rd

$485,000 221 Reef Ct

$485,000 2824 Miradero Dr

(REO)$485,000 418 E Sola St

$487,500 573 E Montecito St

$540,000 818 W Mission St

$560,000 823 Alberta Ave

$600,000 3508 Madrona Dr

$600,000 2525 State St 23

(REO)$605,000 305 Sherwood Dr

$615,000 202 San Nicolas

$638,000 515 W Quinto St

$682,500 227 Los Alamos

(REO)$690,000 832 Vales St

$715,000 4004 Via Lucero Unit 4

(REO)$715,000 3997 Foothill Rd

$717,000 1127 Bath St

$730,000 1576 Eucalyptus Hill

$736,000 342 Oliver Rd

$740,000 521 Carriage Hill Ct

$745,000 4018 Via Diego

$750,000 7 St Ann Dr

$750,000 316 W. Ortega #3

$753,000 1132 Crestline Dr

$775,000 1424 Pacific Ave

(REO)$777,000 218 Las Ondas

$780,000 3124 Argonne Cir

$798,500 1109 Las Olas Ave

$858,000 764 Casiano Dr

$867,000 1609 Garden St

$880,000 3677 Eileen Way

$895,000 4868 Vieja Dr

$987,000 3752 Lincoln Rd

(REO)$1,050,000 2020 Las Canoas Rd

$1,100,000 958 Arbolado Rd

$1,220,000 3084 Calle Mariposa

$1,250,000 707 E Valerio St

$1,379,000 1635 Oramas Rd

$1,400,000 1717 Mission Ridge Rd

$1,500,000 2660 Puesta Del Sol

$2,059,000 100 E Constance Ave

$3,580,000 1709 Overlook Ln

$720,113 Avg. Price
$610,000 Median Price
63 Sales

Summerland

$388,000 3960 Via Real

(REO) $500,000 2576 Lillie Ave

$3,415,000 745 Sand Point Rd

$1,434,333 Avg. Price
$500,000 Median Price
3 Sales

Total:

$739,621 Avg. Price
$610,000 Median Price
116 Sales
24% Reo Sales

Top 20 New-Wave Foreclosure Markets

2011-11-10T09:03:00.000-08:00

October 24, 2011
By Daren Blomquist, Director of Marketing Communications

After five straight quarterly drops, default notices that start the foreclosure process increased 14 percent nationwide from the second quarter to the third quarter of 2011, signaling that another wave of foreclosure activity is beginning in many parts of the country. Although this wave will probably not crest as high as the foreclosure wave of 2007 to 2010 that resulted in more than3 million borrowers losing their properties to foreclosure, it comes on the heels of a temporary lull in foreclosure activity caused by foreclosure processing delays over the past year.

This new wave of foreclosures is hitting some markets particularly hard. Below are graphics showing the 20 markets nationwide with the biggest quarterly increase in new foreclosure starts in the third quarter.

Check the foreclosure trends in your area in our Foreclosure Stats & Trends Center, or find new foreclosure properties in your neighborhood with our free nationwide foreclosure property search.

*Click on the images below to enlarge.

Stronger Total Sales Numbers in 2011

2011-11-03T18:19:00.000-07:00

September statistics, as well as the first half of October, have confirmed that our local market is slowing down. We have had to deal with not only seasonal factors, but also the impacts of the lowering of the confirming loan limit, which hits at the heart of our 1st & 2nd time buyer market. There are two considerations when evaluating the market, prices and strength in number of sales. We had a great summer when considering number of sales. Pricing continues to be under pressure. We continue to find that 50% of our sales of single family homes are under $800,000 and 60-65% are under $1MM. Please read the "Political Risks" section below to understand my view as to what is critically needed to get us out of this mess.

This months newsletter will focus on:

1. Analysis of Closed and Pending sales for September as well as for October 1-19.

2. Nine months statistics detailing the makeup of the local Starter Home market.

3. A more detailed view into the makeup of sales in the Mid-Range market for last seven months.

4. A continuing analysis of Pending Sales.

5. Investment property analysis.

6. Continuing analysis of condo market which, after picking up in last 3 months is now softening again.

7. An analysis of how each segment of the market is doing. We have to remember that we do not correctly answer the question of "How is the Market Doing" if we only give generalized overall answers.

Current Statistical Data

All segments of the local market are slowing down. The number of listings of single family homes has not really slowed, going to 557 from 564, 574 & 565 previously. Last year listing peaked at 678 in July and dropped every month thereafter through December. This year we have been looking at 84.66% as much inventory starting the summer but, instead of decreasing the number of listings has been stable as you can see. So we now have 89.12% as much inventory as last year at this time. Still, we continue to have stronger total sales numbers in 2011 with less inventory. With condos we now have 137 active listings down from 139, 153 & 170 previously. We had 156 at this time last year. We actually began the summer with more listings this year than last last year and we still have not caught up to the total sales as of this time last year. Houses are stronger in number of sales, condos are the same, but realized prices are under pressure in both markets.

Closed Sales - Closed sales came in at 85 for September, down from 96 and 94 the previous two months. These closed sales came in at 93.56% of List Price & 87.54% of Original List Price which is essentially equivalent to recent months. The Median Sales Price jumped back up to $800,000 which is closer to the average median sales price of $815,000 for the first nine months of this year compared to the $734,500 value for last month. The Average Sold Price was $1,178.497 down from an average of about $1,230,000 the last three months. How did median price rise and average price fall for the month? The short answer is that there were fewer lower price sales and fewer high end sales. Looking into October we have 44 closed sales thru 10/19 so things look to be slowing further.

Market Share Analysis: Here is a look into the number of sales and percentages broken into price ranges:

Price Range       Oct. 1-19    Sept.       August    July        June        May
Under $800,000   50%(22)    49%(42)    56%(54)    48%(45)     38% (34)    51% (46)
Under $1MM       66%(29)    62%(53) 70%(67) 58%(55)     61% (54)    60% (54)      $1MM-2MM        23%(10)    27%(23)   18%(17)    31%(29)      28% (25)     22% (20)
Over $2MM          11%( 5)    11%( 9)    13%(12)    11% (10)     11% (10)     18%(16)
   Total Sales            44              85              96               94              89                90

October so far is mirroring September although with lower total numbers. The $1MM-2MM price range has become stronger relative to the other ranges but not really in itself. It is more about fewer lower end and high end sales and almost no sales over $5MM. We have to remember that normal expectation would be for a slowdown moving into the holiday period.

Low End Sales Data (Under $800,000) - Entry level sales are definitely slowing down. Question is whether it is part of overall market slowing that is seasonal or not seasonal or at least partly due to fewer homes selling due to lower FHA loan limits. The low end is still the strongest part of our market. It is good news that the Senate has passed a new law again taking the limits up to $729K. We will have to see if the House will also pass this or, alternatively, that the politics of weakening the current administration is more important than working to improve the economy and housing. Below you will find an analysis of the last nine months activity which creates an average of 47.56 homes sold per month in this segment of the market. We currently have 142 active listings in this price range down from 148 last month and and average of 147 over last five months. This creates between 3.1-3.5 months standing inventory. This part of the market has been looking at these same numbers for at least six months. Normally so little inventory would create increases in price but in this market the prices have declined this year due to the continual addition to inventory of REO and short sale properties. Sellers and agents know that buyers will act aggressively but only if the pricing is exciting to them. As I have stated for months now, unless and until the powers that be respond by offering alternatives to underwater owners besides short sales and foreclosure, we will continue to have declining prices.

SEPTEMBER 20-OCTOBER19 - Sold Properties under $800,000

1-15 days 16-30 31-60 61-90 91-180 over 180 days TOTAL

#of prop: 16 6 11 6 3 - 42

# short sale 3 1 2 - - - 6

#REO 5 1 2 2 1 - 11

# w/price chg 2 2 7 4 3 - 18

AUGUST 20-SEPTEMBER 19 - Sold Properties under $800,000
1-15 days 16-30 31-60 61-90 91-180 over 180 TOTAL

#of prop: 15 7 8 3 8 4 45

# short sale 5 - 3 1 - 1 10

#REO 3 3 2 1 3 1 13

# w/price chg - - 4 2 8 4 18

JAN 19-AUG 20 - Sold Properties under $800,000

1-15 days 16-30 31-60 61-90 91-180 over 180 days TOTAL
#of props: 105 42 57 46 59 32 341

# short sales 19 4 13 11 12 18 77

# REO 23 13 8 17 14 2 77

# w/price chg 1 6 36 39 57 26 165

The data shows that:

1. As we now see month after month, bank-owned and short sale properties continue to make up around 45% of the sales in this part of the market. The 6.25% loss in value thru August this year in this part of market is due to this continuing problem.

2. In last two months more REO properties are closing than short sales.

3. 72% of all listings were into escrow within 60 days in last two months compared to 60% in the first seven months of the year.

Mid Range Sales Data - 35 properties closed in last 30 days in this price range up from 28 and 24 previously and closer to the 44 and 35 in June & July that caused me to start hoping that this critical segment of the market was waking up. Lets keep our fingers crossed that this segment continues to show strength. We do continue to see short sales and now REO properties cropping up in this price range. They are a bit harder to track but at least 6 of the 35 sales last month were either short or REO. This is starting to become a significant factor for this segment of the market. There are currently 171 active properties in this price range down from 178 last month and 191 & 198 previously. If we can stay above 30 monthly sales this segment can come into balance as long as we do not continue to get more short sale and REO properties.

SEPTEMBER 20-OCTOBER 19 - Sold Properties $800,000-$1,600,000

1-15 days 16-30 31-60 61-90 91-180 over 180 days TOTAL

#of prop: 8 5 9 3 5 5 35

# w/ price chg - 1 8 1 5 5 20

MARCH 20-SEPTEMBER 19 - Sold Properties $800,000-$1,600,000

1-15 days 16-30 31-60 61-90 91-180 over 180 days TOTAL

#of prop: 52 14 25 16 44 22 173

# w/ price chg - 2 11 8 33 20 78

Pending Sales - Pending sales (properties going into escrow) dropped dramatically in September to 79 from 111 in August and 96 & 113 previously. The Median List Price for the new pending sales also dropped dramatically to $729K and Average List Price to $1,050,312 which was quite a drop from $$1,220,881 previously. We do have 56 pending sales in October thru 10/19 which does show surprising strength and the median list price for these is up to $807,500 from $749K previously. This is good news. Also 23 of these were in the Mid-Range that is critically important to our market.

Total pending sales now total 168 compared to 173, 176, 190 & 191 previously. We continue to have an orderly market with less than 20% of pending sales taking more than two months to close. We do continue to lose approximately 10% of pending sales to fall through escrows.

Additional pending sales information:

PENDING SALES - Oct. 19       under $800K     $800-1M     $1-2MM     over $2M
     Current total pending (168)            104                   23                27               14
     Avg. monthly sales (last 5 mths)     44.2                10.4               22.8           11.4
     # months inventory over 5 mths      2.35                2.21              1.18            1.23
     # months inventory(Sept. figures) 2.47               2.55              1.17            1.57

PENDING SALES - Sept. 19       under $800K     $800-1M     $1-2MM     over $2M
     Current total pending (173)            100                   22                36               15
     Avg. monthly sales (last 5 mths)     41.8                12.0               22.0           12.2
     # months inventory over 5 mths      2.39                1.83              1.64            1.21
     # months inventory(Aug. figures) 1.85               1.69              2.11            1.25

PENDING SALES - Aug. 19       under $800K     $800-1M     $1-2MM     over $2M
     Current total pending (176)              94                   30                 39               13
     Avg. monthly sales (last 5 mths)     40.6                10.4                22.2           12.4
     # months inventory over 5 mths     2.32                2.88              1.76             1.05
     # months inventory (July figures)    2.10                3.00              1.34             1.3

This information shows that the there is a build up of inventory in the entry level and not much inventory of pendings between $1-2MM. Given the increase in recent pendings in the $1-2MM range this should come back to balance. It will be interesting to how the current pending clear in next month as and if the new pendings decrease as we slow down.

SUMMARY (for single family homes) - Remember that when we look at our market we need to look at strength of sales both in terms of numbers and prices. Santa Barbara had a good summer sales season in terms of number of sales and, although now weakening, it is still good for this time of year. We have reasonable levels of fall through escrows. The problem is that realized prices are not at all exciting. My analysis in August showed that all segments are either flat or falling in realized prices through the first eight months of the year. Buyers still rule but agents and sellers have responding generally by listing the majority of properties, especially in lower price ranges, aggressively.

Investment Properties - We only have 42 active properties down from 46 last month and 44 previously. This market continues to be active with many more buyers than sellers. There are 17 pending properties with 12 of them going into escrow since 9/20/11. We have had four new escrows close in last 30 days. The combination of strengthening rents and great interest rates make any reasonably priced property pencil out. The low end of this market continues to be mostly short-sale & REO properties. We need more inventory.

Condo market - There were 39 closed sales and 32 pending sales in September which continues about three months of good news after a miserable first half of the year. So far in October there seems to be a slow down with only 14 closed sales and 14 pending sales through 10/19. In the last 30 days through 10/19 we find 37 closed sales but only 20 pending sales. The median price for September sales was $445,000 and is $435,000 for those that closed in last 30 days. The average median price for the year now stands at $425,000 which is 2.75% below 2010 & 8.99% below 2009. It feels like this market is trying to make a bottom price-wise. It also looks like this market is also slowing considerably as we move towards the holidays. We will know by next month.

HOW IS THE MARKET DOING? - I am asked this question all the time. We actually have many markets. Here is a quick synopsis of the various markets as I see them.

Entry Level Properties: (under $800,000) - There are currently 142 active listings which is close to the average of 147 for last five months. Sales are steady through September but slowing now. There is 3.5 months inventory at this time at most. Currently this portion of the market accounts for over 50% of all sales. Pricing has fallen 6.25% through first eight months of the year but feels even weaker. This is still the most vibrant part of our local market in terms of number of sales.

Mid Level Properties ($800,000 to $1,600,000) - This part of the market had weakened the last two months but is showing more strength in last 30 days. We are again below the monthly numbers needed to bring this market into balance. There are currently 171 active listings, down from 178 & 191 previously. There is about 5-6 months standing inventory. We actually have stable realized prices in this range but increasing short and REO sales which will not bode will if it continues because it will drive pricing down.

High End Properties ($1,600,000 to $3,000,000) - We had 7 sales in September down from 9, 12 and 10 previously and ONLY 3 so far in October. There are currently 125 active listings compared to 126, 118 and 125 previously. We have 12 pending sales currently. This market still has way too much inventory and sales continue to decrease. Realized prices are somewhat stable.

Luxury Market (over $3,000,000) - There were 6 sales in September compared to 6, 6 & 3 previously and 4 sales so far in October. There are 137 current listings compared to 144, 148, 148 & 145 previously. There is a total of 8 current pending properties. Average Sales Prices have fallen over 19% this year but this is due to fewer higher priced properties selling and there have been a few large transactions that did not make the MLS. The numbers are not good fore either sales or prices.

POLITICAL RISKS - We have to fix housing! Hopefully Congress will a correct the mistake of lowering the conforming loan limit to $625,500 which began October 1. This change actually began having its effect as of around the middle of August because buyers had to make offers based on what loan limits would be at time of closing. The Senate has passed a bill on Oct. 20 that takes the limit back up to $729,750 but, as of this writing, the House has not followed. I cannot for the life of me understand the thinking that led to lowering this limit. The higher limit is important in stretching the purchase price range for buyers with 3.5-10% down payment. In other words homes priced from $648,186 to $810,833 become unattainable for anyone who does not have the "normal" 20% down payment when the limit is lowered. Also adding to the problem is that jumbo loans (now over $625,250 instead of $729,750) require even stiffer qualifying standards on top of a minimum 20% down payment. Rates are higher as well because the jumbo loans are not guaranteed to be purchased and uncertainty creates higher risk which creates higher rates and more rigorous underwriting. Simply said, it becomes more difficult to find a qualified buyer and to get an approved loan which has a negative impact on this part of the market which, in Santa Barbara, is within the heart of the 1st time and 2nd time buyer's market.

In my view at least equally important is the need to fix the mess with underwater home owners. Unless and until the government and Fannie & Freddie finally realize that housing will not turn the corner until this problem is solved we will be looking at weakening prices and more owners becoming renters after losing their homes. I have heard more discussion focused on this problem lately but only time will tell if any progress will be made. Distressed homeowners need to have their loans reduced to amounts in line with current market values and they need to be offered this option without having to qualify as long as they are current in their payments.

The biggest risk remains to continue to do nothing other than to cut costs which, like I mentioned last month, is akin to bleeding a patient in order to cure them as was prescribed in the middle ages. We all now know that bleeding the patient only weakens him and only worsens his situation. One can say many things about the "Occupy Wall Street" group but, unless we the people rise up, we will continue to be run by the small percentage who now rule us all on the basis of their own self-interest and profit. We can hope that the election of 2012 will be about this but that will mean at least another 15 months of real pain before any real change can be enacted and, only then, if the people are not again misguided by the power of advertising in the hands of the corporations. Housing values in Santa Barbara and all of the country will not improve until the problems mentioned above are corrected.

By: Don Elconin

What Will Boost Real Estate?

2011-10-26T11:54:00.001-07:00

Never in my 30 years as a mortgage banker did I think I would see interest rates this low -- as low as during Harry Truman's presidency. Yet very few homeowners are able to take advantage of those rates, which have dropped more than 2 percent since 1997, the beginning of the market crash. And we know why, whether it was the loss of a job, health insurance, or equity in their home with housing values down as much as 50 percent in some states.

This is while the foreclosure backlog is so great it could take more than 60 years in some states to work through,according to New York Times reporter David Streitfeld. So when two presidents -- President Obama in his new jobs plan and former President Clinton on the Sunday TV talk shows touting his Clinton Global Initiative -- say that real estate has to recover for our economy to recover, it should take precedence in discussions on how to boost economy growth.

And there are concrete steps we can take now to cure much of the housing malaise of vacant homes and deteriorating neighborhoods. Obama's inclusion of $15 billion in his new jobs plan to rehabilitate depressed neighborhoods is one such. But much more can be done if he can convince Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to cooperate in loosening some of their almost draconian qualification requirements for both purchase and refinance transactions made more restrictive after the housing crash.

Credit scores, for instance, do not have to be 680 or better, if there are other so-called compensating factors, such as long term employment, or good assets. Or, the almost set-in-stone 45 percent maximum overall debt-to-income ratio could be more flexible with good job security and assets.

And much more can also be done with HARP, the Housing Affordable Refinance Program that was touted to help millions of homeowners, but has helped just 838,000 to date. Hence President Obama's pronouncement that loan modifications would be allowed for "responsible applicants" can mean that compensating factors should be considered when qualifying borrowers.

But there is another restriction keeping many homeowners from refinancing or buying -- the declining equity in their current home. Whereas just 10 years ago average equity was 61 percent, it is now just 38.6 percent, according to the Federal Reserve's latest Flow of Funds report. If Fannie and Freddie would qualify someone with good credit and assets that is, say, 50 percent underwater, the case in many neighborhoods, then they should be allowed a haircut -- meaning a reduction in their principal balance -- that would enable them to refinance at today's record low rates with a new loan that brought it back to 100 percent of current value. The 30-year conforming fixed rate today is hovering at 4 percent.

What is holding Freddie and Fannie back from offering this now, which could in fact refinance an additional 2.9 million homes without significantly increasing tax payers' liability, according to a recent CBO report? Once again, it seems to be Republicans' opposition to any more government liabilities, and the fact that an independent agency, the Federal Housing Finance Authority is Fannie and Freddie's administrator, charged with limiting their losses now that they are government-owned.

But the CBO study showed that it could save homeowners about $7.4 billion in just the first year and help about 111,000 homeowners avoid default with just a net cost of $600 million. What's not to like about this program?

A Troubled Housing Market

2011-10-25T13:06:00.000-07:00

Click on the image below to view in full size

New Obama refi plan could get help from Fed

2011-10-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

Another Federal Reserve policymaker signaled Monday that the central bank may launch a new round of mortgage-bond purchases to boost the housing market.

The comments by New York Fed President Bill Dudley came on the same day that the Obama administration announced a major overhaul of its mortgage-refinancing program for loans owned or backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

A new Fed program “would complement the goals of the administration in helping the housing market,” said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Financial in Newark, N.J.

Dudley, speaking in New York on the economy, said that the continued weakness in housing was “a serious impediment to a stronger economic recovery. . . . Mortgage rates are at record lows and house prices no longer appear overvalued on affordability measures. But obstacles to refinancing and access to credit for home purchases are limiting the support provided by low rates to house prices and consumption.”

Noting that the Fed last month decided to shift more of its massive securities portfolio toward longer-term Treasury bonds to pull down long-term interest rates in general -- including mortgage rates -- Dudley said in response to audience questions that the Fed “potentially could move to do more in that direction.”

Recent market speculation has centered on the idea of the Fed printing money to buy another large chunk of mortgage-backed bonds. The idea would be try to push mortgage rates even lower, which could help spur home purchases and refinancings.

On Friday, Fed Vice Chairwoman Janet Yellen said that another large bond-buying program “might become appropriate if evolving economic conditions called for significantly greater monetary accommodation.”

The average 30-year mortgage rate fell to a generational low of 3.94% in the first week of October, but has since edged up a bit, to 4.11% last week, according to Freddie Mac.

Long-term Treasury bond yields have risen since late September as worries about another U.S. recession have faded, eroding some of the “haven” demand for government bonds. That has helped to put upward pressure on mortgage rates.

The Fed bought $1.25 trillion of mortgage-backed bonds in 2009 and 2010, but it has allowed that portfolio to decline to $860 billion as securities have matured.

Yellen and Dudley are allies of Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke. But they face opposition from some Fed officials who believe the central bank already has done enough to boost the economy.

- Tom Petruno

Home loan defaults jump by 26 percent in California

2011-10-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

SAN DIEGO -- Banks sent nearly 26 percent more default notices to California homeowners in the third quarter compared with the previous three months, stepping up actions against those with delinquent loans in what may herald a new wave of foreclosures, a real estate information service reported Tuesday.

There were 71,275 first-time notices of default issued in the nation's most populous state in July, August and September, DataQuick reported. By comparison, there were 56,633 default notices issued in the second quarter of the fiscal year -- a three-year low.

"Obviously, some lenders and loan servicers have begun to plow through their backlogs of delinquent loans more aggressively," DataQuick President John Walsh said in a statement.

Most of the mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit going into default are from 2005 to 2007, La Jolla-based DataQuick said.

Foreclosures weigh down home values and create uncertainty among would-be homebuyers who fret over prospects that prices may further decline as more foreclosures hit the market.

Default notices were filed against California homeowners who, using median figures, owed $19,198 on a primary mortgage of $331,333 and were eight months behind on payments, DataQuick said.

The median amount borrowers owed at the time the default notice was filed rose about 17 percent from the previous quarter and 27 percent from a year earlier.

"The gains likely stem from some lenders working faster last quarter to get caught up on their backlogs of long-delinquent loans," a DataQuick statement said.

On home equity loans and lines of credit in default, borrowers owed a median $4,576 on a median $70,055 credit line.

The foreclosure process can take nine months or more to complete.

Foreclosure activity began to slow nationwide last year after allegations that lenders were using abusive practices such as "robo-signing," or approving foreclosure paperwork without actually reading it.

The number of default notices in the third quarter of 2011 was down 14.4 percent from the third quarter of 2010 -- before most of the delays began.

Major banks and attorneys general in all 50 states have been working on a settlement of the allegations but California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced last month that she would not agree to a settlement.

Harris said the deal was inadequate in a state where more than 2.2 million residents owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth.

Poorer neighborhoods had more defaults than richer ones in the third quarter. Areas where the median sale price of a home was below $200,000 had 11 defaults notices filed per 1,000 homes. That compared with 2.8 filings in areas with median prices above $800,000.

Statewide, there were 8.1 notices of default filed per 1,000 homes.

-Associated Press

It's Time to Buy That House

2011-10-20T09:47:00.000-07:00

U.S. house prices have plunged by nearly a third since 2006, and homeownership rates are falling at the fastest pace since the Great Depression.

The good news? Two key measures now suggest it's an excellent time to buy a house, either to live in for the long term or for investment income (but not for a quick flip). First, the nation's ratio of house prices to yearly rents is nearly restored to its prebubble average. Second, when mortgage rates are taken into consideration, houses are the most affordable they have been in decades.

Two of the silliest mantras during the real-estate bubble were that a house is the best investment you will ever make and that a renter "throws money down the drain." Whether buying is a better deal than renting isn't a stagnant fact but a changing condition that depends on the relationship between prices and rents, the cost of financing and other factors.

But the math is turning in buyers' favor. Stock-oriented folks can think of a house's price/rent ratio as akin to a stock's price/earnings ratio, in that it compares the cost of an asset with the money the asset is capable of generating. For investors, a lower ratio suggests more income for the price. For prospective homeowners, a lower ratio makes owning more attractive than renting, all else equal.

Nationwide, the ratio of home prices to yearly rents is 11.3, down from 18.5 at the peak of the bubble, according to Moody's Analytics. The average from 1989 to 2003 was about 10, so valuations aren't quite back to normal.

But for most home buyers, mortgage rates are a key determinant of their total costs. Rates are so low now that houses in many markets look like bargains, even if price/rent ratios aren't hitting new lows. The 30-year mortgage rate rose to 4.12% this week from a record low of 3.94% last week, Freddie Mac said Thursday. (The rates assume 0.8% in prepaid interest, or "points.") The latest rate is still less than half the average since 1971.

As a result, house payments are more affordable than they have been in decades. The National Association of Realtors Housing Affordability Index hit 183.7 in August, near its record high in data going back to 1970. The index's historic average is roughly 120. A reading of 100 would mean that a median-income family with a 20% down payment can afford a mortgage on a median-price home. So today's buyers can afford handsome houses—but prudent ones might opt for moderate houses with skimpy payments.

For example, the median home in the greater Phoenix market, including houses, condos and co-ops, costs $121,700, according to Zillow.com. With a 20% down payment and a 4.12% mortgage rate, a buyer's monthly payment would be about $470. Rent for a comparable house would be more than $1,100 a month, according to data provided by Zillow.com.

Of course, all of this assumes mortgages are available—no given now that lending standards have tightened. But long-term data on down payments and credit scores suggest conditions are more normal than many buyers think, according to Stan Humphries, chief economist at Zillow. "If you have good credit, a job and a down payment, you can get a mortgage," Mr. Humphries says. "There's more paperwork and scrutiny than five years ago, but things are pretty much like they were in the '80s and '90s."

Not all housing markets are bargains. Mr. Humphries says Zillow has developed a new price/rent ratio that uses estimates for each individual property rather than city medians, to better reflect the choices facing typical buyers. A fresh look at the numbers suggests Detroit and Miami are plenty cheap for buyers, with price/rent ratios of 5.6 and 7.7, respectively. New York and San Francisco are more expensive, with ratios of 17.6 and 17.2, respectively. The median ratio for 169 markets is 10.7.

For investors seeking income, one back-of-the-envelope way of seeing how these numbers stack up against yields for other assets is to divide 1 by the price/rent ratio, resulting in a rent "yield." The median market's rent yield is 9.3% and Detroit's is 17.9%.

Investors would then subtract for taxes, insurance, upkeep and other expenses—costs that vary widely. But suppose total costs were 4% of the purchase price. That would still leave a 5.3% rent yield in the typical market. With the 10-year Treasury yield at 2.2% and the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index carrying a dividend yield of 2.1%, rents for residential housing in many markets look attractive.

A few caveats are in order. First, not all transactions are average ones. Even in low-priced markets, buyers should shop carefully. Second, prices could fall further. Celia Chen, a senior director at Moody's Analytics, expects prices to drop 3% before bottoming early next year and rising slowly thereafter. "If the economy slips back into recession, however, we could easily see a 10% drop," Ms. Chen says.

And property "flipping" can be dangerous even when prices are rising. That is because, absent a real-estate boom, house price gains simply aren't that exciting. Research by Yale economist Robert Shiller suggests houses more or less track the rate of inflation over long time periods. Houses aren't the magic wealth creators they were made out to be during the bubble. But when prices are low, loans are cheap and plump investment yields are scarce, buyers should jump.

—Jack Hough is a columnist at SmartMoney.com. Email: jack.hough@dowjones.com

New Mortgage Plan Floated

2011-10-18T12:04:00.000-07:00

Underwater Borrowers Current on Payments Would Get Help

By RUTH SIMON, NICK TIMIRAOS and DAN FITZPATRICK

State and federal officials are pushing a plan that could help some "underwater" borrowers get refinancing assistance in the latest government bid to break a legal impasse with big banks over alleged foreclosure abuses and ease problems in the housing market.

State and federal officials are pushing a plan that could help some "underwater" borrowers get refinancing assistance in the latest government bid to break a legal impasse with big banks over alleged foreclosure abuses and ease problems in the housing market.

The proposal was raised in a meeting last week between government negotiators and giant lenders as part of an effort to settle allegations of questionable foreclosure practices. Discussions are still fluid and any final outcome is uncertain. Talks between government officials and the banks are expected to continue this week.

The plan under consideration would make refinancing available to some borrowers whose houses are worth less than their loans, so long as they are current on mortgage payments, according to people familiar with the matter. Such borrowers typically aren't able to refinance because they lack equity in their homes. The plan would apply only to mortgages owned by the banks. It isn't clear how many of those borrowers would qualify for help. Around 20% of all U.S. mortgages are owned by U.S.-chartered commercial banks; the majority are held by investors in mortgage-backed securities.

Federal officials have been trying to broker a settlement with the five largest mortgage servicers—Ally Financial Inc., Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.

The plan is designed to win the support of California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris, who bolted from talks between the banks, states attorneys general and federal officials a few weeks ago. She had called a prior version of the deal "inadequate." Without California's participation, it will be difficult for the government to reach a settlement of $20 billion to $25 billion that some state and federal officials have been seeking.

As for the new plan, a spokesman for Ms. Harris said "we haven't seen any such proposal."

Administration officials have viewed the broader foreclosure settlement as an opportunity to increase the number of financially troubled borrowers who receive principal reductions, which until now banks have granted only on a limited basis, and to provide those at risk of foreclosure with other assistance.

Home prices have fallen by nearly a third over the past five years, leaving many homeowners owing far more than their home is worth, a problem that threatens economic growth for years to come.

Three-quarters of all borrowers who are underwater, amounting to around eight million homeowners, have "above market" rates and could reduce their mortgage rate by at least one percentage point if they were able to refinance, according to CoreLogic.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan joined two days of discussions last week, the highest-profile Obama administration official to participate in the talks, which also include state attorneys general and the Justice Department.

While Mr. Donovan's involvement initially led banks to believe that final decisions could be reached with state and federal officials, several bank executives grew frustrated with what they saw as last-minute efforts to change technical but important details that they believed had already been settled, people familiar with the matter said.

Friday's discussions became very heated at times, people close to the negotiations say. Government negotiators "have no idea how frustrated the banks are," said one person close to the banks.

An administration official conceded that the discussions have grown more "intense" as banks and the government attempt to narrow remaining differences, but characterized banks' concerns as part of the normal course of finalizing a difficult negotiation.

Supporters of the refinance proposal say it would provide a boost to the economy and benefit borrowers who have worked hard to stay current on their loans, even though they owe more than their home is worth.

The refinance program would be particularly costly for banks because they would be forced to give up expected interest income on loans for which borrowers are current on their loan payments and, given their payment histories, unlikely to default. Banks can't reduce rates on loans they don't own because the result would be a net loss to the investor.

"Nine months ago this would have been inconceivable," said one person familiar with the banks' thinking.

Representatives of Ally, Bank of America, Citigroup, J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo declined to comment on the negotiations.

In a speech to the Mortgage Bankers Association last week, Mr. Donovan said a settlement would help banks avoid "hundreds of different lawsuits with varying degrees of success," while benefitting "struggling homeowners now, not sometime in the future."

The administration's efforts to revive the housing market and aid distressed borrowers have been overwhelmed by a sluggish economy and stubbornly high unemployment. The government's loan-modification and refinance initiatives have reached fewer borrowers than expected.

Under the new proposal, banks would refinance certain borrowers who are current on their loan payments, but can't qualify for a traditional refinance because they owe more than their homes are worth.

Many key details remain to be sorted out. It's not clear, for instance, whether borrowers would receive a permanent rate cut or whether their rates would be lowered for several years, then move higher.

Allowing more underwater borrowers to refinance could have an outsize impact in California, which has more than two million underwater borrowers, more than any other state, according to CoreLogic data. It's not clear how many underwater borrowers are current on their loan payments or how many of their loans are held in bank portfolios.

The new proposal has complicated discussions because the banks want a broader release from additional legal claims in exchange for accepting the refinance proposal, sources familiar with the negotiations say.

The two sides have differing opinions as to whether adding the refinance component would increase the price tag for the deal, these people add.

The refinancing discussion is separate from a parallel effort by the Obama administration to expand an existing federal program that allows homeowners to refinance if they have little or no equity and their loans are backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-controlled housing giants.

The administration and federal regulators are preparing to unveil changes to that program as soon as this month to remove technical barriers that have blocked many eligible borrowers from participating.

Santa Barbara County Sales for September

2011-10-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

CARPINTERIA

$186,000 5935 HICKORY ST 2
$355,000 4692 CARPINTERIA AVE 30
$399,000 4816 SAWYER AVE
$510,000 4234 CARPINTERIA AVE 1
$600,000 1484 NAMOUNA ST
$625,000 6955 GOBERNADOR CYN RD
(REO) $727,000 5384 STAR PINE RD

$486,000 Avg Price
$510,000 Median Price
7 Sales

SUMMERLAND

(REO)$800,500 2289 SHELBY ST

$5,900,000 3555 1/2 PADARO LN

$3,350,250 Ave/Median Price
2 Sales

MONTECITO

$533,000 1932 JAMESON LN D
$535,000 1028 THE FAIRWAY
$535,500 1940 JAMESON LN A
$950,000 1126 HILL RD
$980,000 633 TABOR LN

(REO)$1,106,000 2803 EAST VALLEY RD
$1,662,000 840 RIVEN ROCK RD
$1,757,500 175 TIBURON BAY LN

(REO) $1,825,000 2024 SANDY PLACE RD
$2,550,000 920 CAMINO VIEJO RD
$2,775,000 145 BUTTERFLY LN
$2,975,000 965 PARK LN
$3,134,500 807 PARK HILL LN
$3,300,000 780 ROMERO CYN RD
$3,600,000 897 PARK LN
$4,700,000 202 OLIVE MILL RD
$4,850,000 449 COURT PL

$2,221,676 Avg Price
$1,825,000 Median
17 Sales

SANTA BARBARA

$212,500 492 N LA CUMBRE RD
$234,500 350 CHAPALA ST #203
$234,500 4538 OAK GLEN DR F
$250,000 21 W ISLAY ST
(REO) $310,000 315 S CANADA ST A

315,000 732 BOND AVE
$320,000 721 W VALERIO ST
$325,000 34 W CONSTANCE AVE 2
$329,000 618 SAN PASCUAL ST
$329,000 618 SAN PASCUAL ST
$329,000 618 SAN PASCUAL ST
$330,000 711 W ORTEGA ST 11
$377,500 358 OLIVER RD
$380,000 535 E MONTECITO ST
$390,000 101 S SALINAS ST
$410,000 128 W ALAMAR AVE 3
$417,000 1078 MIRAMONTE DR 7
$417,500 416 POR LA MAR CIR
$437,000 407 W PEDREGOSA ST 21
$445,000 355 POR LA MAR CIR
$450,000 539 E MONTECITO ST
$450,000 46 BARRANCA AVE 2
$470,000 1717 THOMAS AVE
$474,000 716 EUCALYPTUS AVE
(REO) $310,000 29 LA CUMBRE CIR
(REO) $450,000 1411 CLIFTON ST

$500,000 1440 W VALERIO ST
$500,000 3039 LUCINDA LN
$505,000 1311 W VALERIO ST
$512,000 830 KENTIA AVE
$520,000 2229 DE LA VINA ST

$536,000 920 CHELTENHAM RD
$540,000 1085 VERONICA SPRINGS
$550,000 616 MULBERRY AVE
$550,000 LA CORONILLA
$550,000 421 VERANO DR

$570,000 328 LOMA VISTA AVE
$580,000 931 WELDON RD
$600,000 318 W DE LA GUERRA ST B
$604,000 4004 VIA LUCERO UNIT 7
$612,000 1518 LAGUNA ST B
$631,000 535 E MONTECITO ST
$635,000 4004 VIA LUCERO UNIT 9
$649,000 824 CHELTENHAM RD
$655,000 1818 PAMPAS AVE
$660,000 2829 PUESTA DEL SOL
$665,000 1835 CHAPALA ST
$667,000 26 E VALERIO ST
$689,500 535 E MONTECITO ST
$716,500 1902 EL CAMINO DE LA LU
$720,000 3934 CAMELLIA LN
$735,000 3742 BRENNER DR
$740,000 2122 RED ROSE WAY
$746,500 2915 VALENCIA DR
$755,000 1153 PALOMINO RD
$790,000 221 GROVE LN
$810,000 3210 CALLE MARIPOSA
$880,000 627 SURF VIEW DR
$891,000 3992 PRIMAVERA RD
$930,000 407 E FIGUEROA ST
$959,000 2229 STATE ST
$969,000 501 CALLE ALAMO

$975,000 4538 VIA MARIA
$1,025,000 220 E JUNIPERO ST
$1,112,500 211 BATH ST
$1,112,500 614 KENTIA AVE
$1,125,000 588 VIA RUEDA
$1,145,000 209 BATH ST
$1,150,000 2150 FOOTHILL LN
$1,195,000 1266 SAN MIGUEL AVE
$1,296,000 229 N ARBOLEDA RD
$1,300,000 2928 ARRIBA WAY
$1,337,500 407 NORTHRIDGE RD
$1,350,000 259 SAN RAFAEL AVE
$1,465,000 1915 SANTA BARBARA ST
$1,495,000 2817 EXETER PL
$1,550,000 4663 VINTAGE RANCH LN
$1,550,000 2465 CALLE ALMONTE
$1,570,000x 4175 PALOMA DR
$1,574,500 1608 LAS CANOAS RD
$1,595,000 637 E MICHELTORENA
$1,685,000 1717 MIRA VISTA AVE
$1,890,000 501 E GUTIERREZ ST
$1,985,000 734 ARBOLADO RD
$1,997,000 531 CHAPALA #D
$2,255,000 209 E PEDREGOSA ST
$4,000,000 4484 VIA ESPERANZA

$832,575 Avg Price
649000 Median Price
87 Sales

HOPE RANCH

$1,200,000 777 VIA AIROSA

$4,850,000 4010 BITHYNIA RD

$3,025,000 Avg/Median Price

2 Sales

GOLETA

$175,000 29 DEARBORN PL 19
(REO) $180,000 7560 CATHEDRAL OAKS 4
$220,000 7610 HOLLISTER AVE 315
$285,000 5740 ENCINA RD 2
$335,000 7606 HOLLISTER AVE 307
$365,000 7620 HOLLISTER AVE 219
$372,000 5020 BIRCHWOOD RD
$380,000 137 ATLANTIC LANE
$400,000 255 MORETON BAY LN 2
$425,000 413 CANNON GREEN DR G

(REO) $430,000 4983 SAN MARCOS CT
$445,000 558 POPPYFIELD PL
$455,000 547 POPPYFIELD PL
$460,000 7262 DEL NORTE DR
$480,000 4913 RHOADS AVE
(REO) $489,000 559 PINTURA DR
$495,000 637 AVENIDA PEQUENA
$525,000 314 CINDERELLA LN
$530,000 4844 WINDING WAY
(REO) $540,000 4824 PAYTON ST
$540,000 373 N KELLOGG AVE
(REO) $541,000 184 SALISBURY AVE
$555,000 7592 HEMPSTEAD AVE
(REO) $566,500 7244 FORDHAM PL
$600,000 104 ATLANTIC LANE
$608,000 7618 NEWPORT DR
$612,500 523 S SAN MARCOS RD
$620,000 101 ATLANTIC LANE
$663,000 5051 WALNUT PARK DR
$703,000 5635 PEMBROKE CT
$769,000 265 CINDERELLA LN
$800,000 421 PEPPERDINE CT
$830,000 935 DENA WAY
$1,300,000 7772 HERON CT
$1,450,000 1025 OCEAN VISTA LN

$546,971 Avg Price
$525,000 Median Price
35 Sales

ISLA VISTA

$820,000 6730 SABADO TARDE RD
$925,000 6603 TRIGO RD

$872,500 Avg/Median Price
2 Sales

Home foreclosure proceedings on the rise again

2011-10-13T10:36:00.000-07:00

California and other Western states see the largest increase in banks' beginning the foreclosure process on homes.

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

October 12, 2011, 9:28 p.m.

After months of a foreclosure slowdown caused by investigations into improper practices, the nation's home-repossession machinery is beginning to move again — particularly in states such as California where courts don't oversee the process.

The number of homes entering the foreclosure process surged 19% in the third quarter compared with the previous quarter in states where foreclosures take place largely outside of the courtroom, according to RealtyTrac, an Irvine information firm. These nonjudicial states include California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon and Washington.

That increase was higher than in the so-called judicial states, which include New York and Florida, where the number of homes entering foreclosure increased 9%.

"[The banks] are generally working through more of these loans, but the places where they can file the most quickly are going to be the nonjudicial states," said Celia Chen, a housing economist with Moody's Analytics.

The increase in new foreclosure proceedings comes as talks over a broad foreclosure settlement by state attorneys general with the nation's five largest mortgage servicers have experienced setbacks. California recently stepped out of those discussions, declaring it would pursue its own path.

New York, Delaware, Nevada, Massachusetts, Kentucky and Minnesota also have signaled that they were unhappy with the direction of negotiations because they say the legal release from liability being offered to the banks is too broad. New York and Delaware have been cooperating in their own probes separate from the coalition.

Nationally, foreclosure activity — from the default notices that begin the process to seizures of homes — was up slightly in the third quarter, reversing three quarters of declines.

Banks filed actions on 610,337 properties in the third quarter, an increase of less than 1% from the previous quarter but 34% below the same quarter a year earlier. Analysts expect foreclosures to pick up in coming months.

While the number of homes entering foreclosure picked up in the third quarter, those repossessed by banks continued to decline. U.S. home repossessions were down 4% from the prior quarter and were down 32% from the same quarter a year earlier.

Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, said banks were probably waiting for some kind of negotiated settlement before finally beginning to take back homes at a faster clip.

"If the banks had their way, they'd be foreclosing at a much more brisk pace," Cecala said.

alejandro.lazo@latimes.com

Top 10 Metros to Buy Short Sales

2011-10-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

Residential short selling is rising rapidly in some of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. U.S. banks are finally approving more short sales to pre-emptively jettison sketchy mortgage loans off their troubled balance sheets — while avoiding the increasing cost and complications involved with selling bank-owned properties. This shift means bigger discounts and faster short sales transactions in some markets.

If you’re in the market today for a home, you’re almost guaranteed to be looking at distressed properties, including short sales. Nationwide, nearly one-third of all U.S. homes sold in the second quarter of 2011 were in some stage of foreclosure, with short sales accounting for 12 percent of all residential real estate sales, according to RealtyTrac data. A total of 102,407 short sales were sold to third party buyers from April to June 2011, up 19 percent from the 86,059 short sales sold in the first quarter of 2011.

And more are expected: In Nevada, 60 percent of the properties with a mortgage are worth at least 25 percent less than the outstanding mortgage, while 44 percent in Arizona and 46 percent in Florida are underwater, according to RealtyTrac. In Michigan, 58 percent of borrowers are underwater, while 27 percent of Californian borrowers are drowning in negative equity. As many of these underwater buyers decide to sell — or are forced to sell by some unfortunate circumstance — a short sale will be their primary option.

Based on an analysis of RealtyTrac data, including average sales price, average discount, percent of all sales and the average days to sell a short sale, Foreclosure News Report compiled the following list of the Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) for buying a short sale..

1) LOS ANGELES

RealtyTrac data shows that properties sold via short sale in the second quarter took an average of 192 days to sell from the date they entered the foreclosure process, compared to an average of 186 days to sell an REO property from the time it was repossessed by the lender.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana metro area had more short sales than any other metro in the nation during the second quarter, registering 9,145 short sales in Q2 2011. Buyers saved 32 percent on their short sale transactions. The average price of a Los Angeles short sale was $350,237.

2) PHOENIX

With short sales accounting for nearly a quarter of all sales, Phoenix buyers had no shortage of pre-foreclosures bargains to choose from. In the second quarter of 2011, Phoenix buyers negotiated 8,434 short sale transactions, paying an average $133,793, with an average discount of 27 percent.

3) CAPE CORAL-FORT MYERS, FL

During the housing boom, homebuilding was on steroids in Southwestern Florida, dredging hundreds of miles of swampy canals into a modern-day Venice on the Gulf of Mexico. At Lehigh Acres, a team of admen transformed a sprawling ranch east of Fort Myers into a new formula in mass-marketing real estate.

But that addiction to overbuilding and overpricing has left thousands of prospective sellers seriously underwater.

Cape Coral clocked in with 1,358 short sales in the second quarter of 2011, with an average price of $111,029. Buyers in Cape Coral paid 33 percent less for pre-foreclosure (short) sales than the average price for properties not in foreclosure.

4) OXNARD-THOUSAND OAKS-VENTURA, CA

Two thousand miles away from Cape Coral, Fla., another coastal city in California has emerged as a short sale pioneer. Oxnard is among the metros most battered by the housing slump.

For short sale buyers, there are bargains galore in Ventura County. The Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA metro had 681 short sales in the second quarter of 2011. Prices were slashed 24 percent on short sales, with the average price at $352,994 according to RealtyTrac. Short sales accounted for 26 percent of all real estate transactions.

5) RENO-SPARKS, NV

About 60 percent of homeowners in Reno owe more on their house than the house is worth, making the short sale market in Reno is huge.

Pre-foreclosure sales alone accounted for nearly 30 percent of all sales in the second quarter of 2011, according to RealtyTrac. Buyers paid only $156,664 on average for a Reno short sale (less than it costs to build a new house), and the 702 short sales in Reno during the second quarter represented a 50 percent increase from the previous quarter.

6) SAN FRANCISCO

Short sales in the San Francisco metro rose 47 percent from the first quarter to the second quarter to a total of 3,237. Buyers snagged an average discount of 41 percent on pre-foreclosures, although the average price for a short sale was still a lofty $364,766.

7) SAN JOSE

Once considered a safe alternative to the overheated Bay Area real estate market, the San Jose metro — home to the Silicon Valley — has no shortage of short sale inventory.

The East Bay area of Northern California offers homebuyers and investors big discounts on short sales, averaging a whopping 41 percent savings. Despite the big discount, the average short sale price of $420,806 in the San Jose area was still one of the highest in the country.

8) PORTLAND MSA

Portland, a metropolitan area of some 2.2 million people, is a spring board to the drizzly Pacific Northwest. The area reported a total of 756 pre-foreclosure (short) sales in the second quarter, up 39 percent from the previous quarter and accounting for 11 percent of all sales.

9) ATLANTA

Atlanta was another metro at the top of the short sale list for the second quarter, with a 21 percent bump in pre-foreclosure sales from the prior quarter. In the metro Atlanta area, 2,595 short sales were sold to third party buyers in in the second quarter, accounting for 14 percent of all sales.

10) MILWAUKEE

Rounding out the Top 10 was the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis metro, where 324 short sales took place between April and the end of June 2011 — up 20 percent from the previous quarter. The average price for a short sale was $107,980, 41 percent below the average price of a property not in foreclosure.

This article was excerpted from the October issue of the Foreclosure News Report, an award-winning monthly newsletter focusing on the foreclosure market. Get a free trial issue.

September 27, 2011
By Octavio Nuiry, Staff Writer

Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The ‘50s

2011-10-12T14:01:00.000-07:00

Percentages and Facts
Here are some percentages courtesy of USA Today’s article covering the mortgage rates:

“The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 4.12%, from 4.22%, Freddie Mac said Thursday. That's the lowest level on records dating back to 1971.
Freddie Mac says the last time rates were cheaper was 1951, when most home loans lasted just 20 or 25 years.
The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage, a popular refinancing option, fell to 3.33% from 3.39%. That's the lowest on records dating to 1991 and likely the lowest ever, according to economists.”

Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The 50’s |

Predictions

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/story/2011-09-08/Mortgage-rates-fall-to-lowest-level-since-1950s-few-qualify/50319086/1

Even though mortgage rates are astronomically low sales of new homes are on their way to breaking a low that dates back 50 years. Resales aren’t looking to good either as they should be the worst in 14 years. What is happening?

It’s really not rocket science, just because mortgage rates drop, people are still unemployed and no one is getting raises. Folks are piling up insurmountable debts, and purchasing a new home isn’t even anything they would consider no matter what the mortgage rates.

The few out there that do want to take advantage of these low mortgage rates can’t qualify for bank loans.

USA Today breaks it down like this:

“Banks are insisting on credit scores above 700 and 20% down payments for first-time buyers. Many repeat buyers have too little equity in their homes to meet loan requirements. Roughly 40% of U.S. households have the necessary credit scores to get a prime mortgage rate, according to an Associated Press analysis of Fair Isaac, or FICO, data. But that's not the chief reason people aren't buying homes or refinancing.
Just half of Americans say they'll ever be able to save enough money for any type of down payment, let alone 20%, according to a survey by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
Nearly a third of homeowners have nearly zero equity in their homes or are underwater on their mortgage, owing more than the house is now worth, according to the real estate research firm CoreLogic. That leaves then unable to refinance because of lender-imposed limits and the cost of extra fees.”

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/story/2011-09-08/Mortgage-rates-fall-to-lowest-level-since-1950s-few-qualify/50319086/1

Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The 50’s | AMPS

The real estate market will not correct itself if we continue to follow the failed strategy of relying on banks to lend. As the article above clearly details, it's just not going to happen. When something isn't working, you must adapts your strategy to something that is working. The best post-bubble real estate strategy working in today's marketing is called the Assignment of Mortgage Payments System.

The assignment of mortgage payments system helps sellers sell their 'unsellable' house to 'unloanable' buyers by utilizing owner financing. When homeowners sell their houses to buyers who don't qualify for conventional financing due to the strict lending policy of banks, it allows a real estate transaction to occur at market price.

This type of real estate transaction is a 'win' for all parties involved. The home owner is able to sell his or her house without having to come out of pocket to pay closing cost, without going into foreclosure and ruining their credit. The buyer is able to purchase a home they otherwise would not have been able to. The bank, private mortgage insurance company, and HOA are all still receiving money on a performing note. The neighborhood is not seeing it's values decreasing due to a foreclosure. Plus, fewer abandoned houses lead to less crime. State governments will continue to receive property taxes. Finally, tax payers don't have to watch their government waste tax dollars on failed housing plans.

Solving problems is the key to correcting the economy and the housing market. Record low mortgage rates aren't going to fix the housing market; providing a common sense solution to the challenges facing home sellers and home buyers will. It's time let the free market do what it does best by utilizing owner financing and the assignment of mortgage payments system.

If you enjoyed reading “Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The 50s,” check out more at REiMaverick.

Written by Phill Grove on October 2, 2011

Santa Barbara Country Sales - August 2011

2011-10-11T10:15:00.000-07:00

Carpinteria

$100,000 8/18/11 4975 SANDYLAND RD 309 CARP 93013

$220,000 8/19/11 5911 HICKORY ST 3 CARP 93013
$240,000 8/22/11 1215 FRANCISCAN CT 2 CARP 93013
$280,000 8/12/11 1240 FRANCISCAN CT 5 CARP 93013
$299,000 8/26/11 1261 FRANCISCAN CT 4 CARP 93013 (REO)
$330,500 8/05/11 4652 NINTH ST CARP 93013 (REO)
$359,000 8/19/11 5455 EIGHTH ST 18 CARP 93013
$380,000 8/12/11 1477 THERESA ST CARP 93013
$419,000 8/15/11 4854 SAWYER AVE CARP 93013
$450,000 8/31/11 1408 LINHERE DR CARP 93013(REO)
$475,000 8/26/11 1333 VALLECITO RD CARP 93013
$513,000 8/19/11 1423 CAMINO TRILLADO CARP 93013
$540,000 8/11/11 5135 CONCORD PL CARP 93013
$572,500 8/24/11 5382 SANTA ROSA LN CARP 93013 (REO)
$625,000 8/19/11 1312 VALLECITO RD CARP 93013
$886,000 8/05/11 5450 HALES LN CARP 93013
$925,000 8/25/11 4825 SANDYLAND RD 2 CARP 93013
$1,150,000 8/04/11 4664 FOURTH ST CARP 93013
$1,350,000 8/29/11 5511 CALLE ARENA CARP 93013
$532,316 Avg Price

$450,000 Median Price
19 Sales

Montecito

$253,500 8/10/11 955 TORO CANYON RD MONT 93108
$305,000 8/30/11 OFF CIMA LINDA MONT
$335,000 8/19/11 100 W MOUNTAIN DR MONT 93103
$535,000 8/15/11 1220 COAST VILLAGE 111 MONT 93108 (REO)
$599,000 8/19/11 10 W MOUNTAIN DR MONT 93103
$615,000 8/09/11 1936 JAMESON LN D MONT 93108
$747,500 8/16/11 1220 COAST VILLAGE 207 MONT 93108
$790,000 8/31/11 755 CHELHAM WAY MONT 93108 (REO)

$825,000 8/16/11 2162 EAST VALLEY RD MONT 93108
$1,100,000 8/31/11 230 SIERRA VISTA RD MONT 93108
$1,200,000 8/05/11 42 SEAVIEW DR MONT 93108
$1,200,000 8/12/11 1367 DANIELSON RD MONT 93108
$1,350,000 8/30/11 1390 PEPPER LN MONT 93108
$1,500,000 8/10/11 3106 EUCALYPTUS HILL RD MONT 93108
$1,555,000 8/23/11 297 SAN YSIDRO RD MONT 93108
$1,600,000 8/26/11 132 MIDDLE RD MONT 93108
$1,600,000 8/10/11 1344 PLAZA DE SONADORES MONT 93108
$2,150,000 8/08/11 1533 SINALOA DR MONT 93108
$2,419,000 8/09/11 2075 BIRNAM WOOD DR MONT 93108
$3,150,000 8/31/11 521 LAS FUENTES DR MONT 93108
$3,750,000 8/08/11 222 Butterfly LN MONT
$3,875,000 8/31/11 1567 RAMONA LN MONT 93108
$9,000,000 8/09/11 1379 OAK CREEK CANYON MONT 93108
$10,750,000 8/03/11 1473 EDGECLIFF LN MONT 93108

$2,133,500 Avg. Price
$1,275,000 Median Price
24 Sales

Santa Barbara

$130,000 8/03/11 930 E HALEY ST SBAR 93103
$148,000 8/01/11 521 W MONTECITO ST 8 SBAR 93101
$299,000 8/18/11 20 ALISAL RD SBAR 93103
$300,000 8/31/11 611 W SOLA ST 7 SBAR 93101
$325,000 8/26/11 1121 WALNUT AVE SBAR 93101

$362,500 8/24/11 501 W JUNIPERO ST SBAR 93105 (REO)
$370,000 8/01/11 919 E COTA ST SBAR 93103
$380,000 8/10/11 4154 VIA ANDORRA A SBAR 93110
$402,000 8/26/11 1104 N MILPAS ST SBAR 93103

$414,500 8/18/11 1426 ALMOND AVE SBAR 93101 (REO)
$415,000 8/22/11 3893 CINCO AMIGOS SBAR 93105
$430,000 8/26/11 535 E MONTECITO ST #103 SBAR 93103
$432,500 8/05/11 4111 VIA ANDORRA A SBAR 93110

$437,000 8/04/11 1414 CARPINTERIA ST SBAR 93103 (REO)
$440,500 8/26/11 535 E MONTECITO ST #110 SBAR 93103
$470,000 8/31/11 1713 CALLE CERRO SBAR 93101

$475,000 8/23/11 187 LA VENTA DR SBAR 93110 (REO)

$480,000 8/09/11 4326 MODOC RD G SBAR 93110
$485,000 8/08/11 1309 CASTILLO ST SBAR 93101
$500,000 8/26/11 4344 MODOC RD 1 SBAR 93110
$515,000 8/16/11 1812 CHAPALA ST B SBAR 93101
$520,000 8/05/11 3607 SAN REMO DR SBAR 93105
$522,000 8/12/11 229 JESMARY LN 2 SBAR 93105
$525,000 8/12/11 2806 MIRADERO DR SBAR 93105

$530,000 8/26/11 1028 W VALERIO ST SBAR 93101 (REO)
$535,000 8/23/11 754 WESTWOOD DR SBAR 93109
$550,000 8/30/11 121 S QUARANTINA ST SBAR 93103
$550,000 8/08/11 1322 E YANONALI ST SBAR 93103
$579,000 8/05/11 902 W ISLAY ST SBAR 93101
$580,000 8/30/11 490 TERRACE RD SBAR 93109
$600,000 8/22/11 80 SKYLINE CIR SBAR 93109
$600,000 8/19/11 3704 ARDILLA DR SBAR 93105

$600,000 8/29/11 1510 SANTA ROSA AVE SBAR 93109 (REO)
$605,000 8/31/11 705 W MISSION ST SBAR 93101
$607,000 8/01/11 155 S ONTARE RD SBAR 93105
$620,000 8/17/11 315 W HALEY ST SBAR 93101
$620,000 8/19/11 660 CATANIA WAY SBAR 93105
$635,000 8/15/11 4004 VIA LUCERO UNIT 12 SBAR 93110
$635,000 8/26/11 1734 CASTILLO ST SBAR 93101
$638,000 8/30/11 515 W QUINTO ST SBAR 93105
$649,000 8/12/11 3722 ARDILLA DR SBAR 93105
$650,000 8/12/11 335 CORDOVA DR SBAR 93109
$675,000 8/19/11 730 SURF VIEW DR SBAR 93109

$690,000 8/26/11 3735 ALCAMO PL SBAR 93105 (REO)
$727,000 8/17/11 4536 CARRIAGE HILL DR SBAR 93110
$730,000 8/12/11 218 W MISSION ST SBAR 93101
$730,000 8/12/11 3831 SUNSET RD SBAR 93110
$759,000 8/16/11 407 LA MARINA DR SBAR 93109
$775,000 8/26/11 415 POR LA MAR CIR SBAR 93103
$825,000 8/24/11 216 ADAIR DR SBAR 93105
$835,000 8/29/11 1924 GARDEN ST SBAR 93101
$895,000 8/25/11 2015 RED ROSE WAY SBAR 93109
$900,000 8/02/11 3325 CALLE NOGUERA SBAR 93105
$925,000 8/12/11 1718 PROSPECT AVE SBAR 93103
$929,000 8/23/11 2000 EL CAMINO DE LA LU SBAR 93109
$930,000 8/26/11 1049 ALAMEDA PADRE SERR SBAR 93103
$950,000 8/02/11 1308 COLINA LN SBAR 93103
$950,000 8/24/11 1322 SAN MIGUEL AVE SBAR 93109
$1,000,000 8/03/11 2320 STATE ST SBAR 93105
$1,040,000 8/26/11 1234 PLAZA DEL MONTE SBAR 93101
$1,125,000 8/17/11 704 CHIQUITA RD SBAR 93103
$1,225,000 8/10/11 929 LAGUNA ST UNIT B SBAR 93101
$1,233,000 8/22/11 941 CAMINO DEL RIO SBAR 93110
$1,275,000 8/30/11 801 DE LA GUERRA TERR SBAR 93103
$2,400,000 8/01/11 800 CACIQUE ST SBAR 93103
$3,500,000 8/05/11 127 ANACAPA ST SBAR 93101
$4,300,000 8/16/11 111 VIA DEL CIELO SBAR 93109
$759,463 Avg. Price
$605,000 Median Price
67 Sales

Hope Ranch

$1,100,000 8/11/11 4033 VIA LAGUNA HOPR 93110

$2,300,000 8/02/11 4267 LLANO AVE HOPR 93110
$2,850,000 8/16/11 530 VIA SINUOSA HOPR 93110
$2,850,000 8/19/11 4672 VIA ROBLADA HOPR 93110
$2,275,000 Avg. Price
$2,575,000 Median Price
4 Sales

Goleta

$232,000 8/30/11 49 DEARBORN PL 1 GOLT 93117

$265,000 8/22/11 49 DEARBORN PL 15 GOLT 93117 (REO)$330,000 8/23/11 7610 HOLLISTER AVE 217 GOLT 93117
$340,000 8/25/11 307 NORTHGATE DR D GOLT 93117
$340,000 8/30/11 7606 HOLLISTER AVE 312 GOLT 93117
$350,000 8/12/11 331 NORTHGATE DR D GOLT 93117
$365,000 8/04/11 367 CANNON GREEN DR C GOLT 93117

$385,000 8/15/11 690 S SAN MARCOS RD GOLT 93111 (REO)
$417,000 8/17/11 5788 ENCINA RD 3 GOLT 93117

$425,000 8/05/11 7080 MADERA DR GOLT 93117 (REO)

$431,000 8/19/11 7574 CALLE REAL GOLT 93117 (REO)

$440,000 8/30/11 594 RIPLEY ST GOLT 93111 (REO)$441,000 8/19/11 251 MORETON BAY LN 2 GOLT 93117
$450,000 8/31/11 5085 RHOADS AVE A GOLT 93111
$480,000 8/16/11 232 DAYTONA DR GOLT 93117
$485,000 8/10/11 5214 MONO DR GOLT 93111
$525,000 8/31/11 230 WINCHESTER DR GOLT 93117
$525,000 8/24/11 6105 CRAIGMONT DR GOLT 93117

$535,000 8/19/11 5355 UNIVERSITY DR GOLT 93111 (REO)
$550,000 8/18/11 288 PLACER DR GOLT 93117
$559,000 8/03/11 395 DAYTONA DR GOLT 93117

$565,000 8/17/11 7544 CARLISLE WAY GOLT 93117
$565,000 8/26/11 6206 AVENIDA GORRION GOLT 93117

$607,000 8/01/11 7262 GEORGETOWN RD GOLT 93117 (REO)
$630,000 8/16/11 5281 CALLE BARQUERO GOLT 93111
$715,000 8/31/11 467 ORANGE BLOSSOM LN GOLT 93117
$729,000 8/03/11 5334 BERKELEY RD GOLT 93111
$739,000 8/05/11 161 ST JOSEPH ST GOLT 93111
$785,000 8/09/11 1189 EDWARD PL GOLT 93117
$790,000 8/24/11 7837 DAY RD GOLT 93117
$790,000 8/03/11 49 TOURAN LN GOLT 93117
$875,000 8/02/11 731 CATHEDRAL POINTE LN GOLT 93111
$895,000 8/01/11 5831 GAVIOTA ST GOLT 93117
$938,000 8/18/11 264 ELLWOOD BEACH DR GOLT 93117

$940,000 8/31/11 4850 VIA LOS SANTOS GOLT 93111 (REO)
$1,100,000 8/19/11 1048 DIAMOND CREST CT GOLT 93110
$1,200,000 8/02/11 780 LA BUENA TIERRA GOLT 93111
$1,400,000 8/19/11 4965 SUNSET VISTA LN GOLT 93111
$608,763 Avg. Price
$542,500 Median Price
38 Sales

Summerland

$800,000 8/23/11 2525 BANNER AVE SUMM 93067
$875,000 8/26/11 2515 GOLDEN GATE AVE SUMM 93067
$920,000 8/05/11 2494 SHELBY ST SUMM 93067
$1,100,000 8/25/11 2435 GOLDEN GATE AVE SUMM 93067
$923,750 Avg. Price
$897,500 Median Price
4 Sales

South Santa Barbara County Overall
$963,172 Avg. Price
$611,000 Medain Price

Santa Barbara Real Estate

Housing Crisis to End in 2012 as Banks Loosen Credit Standards

Q&A: What the foreclosure settlement means for homeowners

Mortgage deal could bring billions in relief

Housing Crisis to End in 2012 as Banks Loosen Credit Standards

BY: KRISTA FRANKs

Home prices decline for a third straight month

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of 20 large U.S. cities fell 1.3% in November from October as foreclosures continue to drag down the housing market.

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times February 1, 2012

Two Obama initiatives to address foreclosure crisis face hurdles

Sales Stir Hope for Housing Market

Home sales improve nationally in December

Santa Barbara End of the Year Sales Report

Scheduled foreclosure auctions soar in California

Banks set the clock for forced sales of more than 26,000 homes in the state in November, a 63% increase from October. Overall foreclosure notices nationwide fell last month.

2012 Mortgage delinquencies seen dropping sharply

Barclays analyst sees housing rebound coming in 2012

Consumer Confidence on the Rise?

Pending Home Sales Jump in October

The Sky’s the (Loan) Limit

Rich Neighborhoods Riddled With Foreclosures

Foreclosure Activity Increases for Third Straight Month

BY: CARRIE BAY

California attorney general's office subpoenas Fannie, Freddie

Information is sought on the mortgage giants' roles as landlords who own thousands of foreclosed properties in California. Also sought are details of their mortgage-servicing and home-repossession practices, a source says.

Housing: A time to buy

Sales in Santa Barbara - October 2011

Top 20 New-Wave Foreclosure Markets

Stronger Total Sales Numbers in 2011

What Will Boost Real Estate?

A Troubled Housing Market

New Obama refi plan could get help from Fed

Home loan defaults jump by 26 percent in California

It's Time to Buy That House

New Mortgage Plan Floated

Santa Barbara County Sales for September

Home foreclosure proceedings on the rise again

California and other Western states see the largest increase in banks' beginning the foreclosure process on homes.

Top 10 Metros to Buy Short Sales

Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The ‘50s

If you enjoyed reading “Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level Since The 50s,” check out more at REiMaverick.

Santa Barbara Country Sales - August 2011

By Alejandro Lazo, Los Angeles Times

February 1, 2012