I saw a Yahoo! Finance press release
a few weeks ago ranking KB Home as the number one ranked home builder in Fortune Magazine. In the past years, my team has sold many homes in KB developments throughout Silicon Valley, so I did not think this was surprising. However, what was surprising was when I tried this morning to do a Google search for a certain KB Home development in Sunnyvale and San Jose.
I could not find a KB Home website anywhere on the first page of my search results. I thought, that’s kind of weird for one of the largest home builders and a public company (NYSE: KBH) to have no first page search engine presence for their new home communities. I gave them the benefit of the doubt and tried to look on the second page… still nothing.
All I have to say is that with 87% of home buyers
using the Internet to search for a home, shouldn’t you spend more effort on online marketing?Babel on dvd
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Palo Alto has always been one of Silicon Valley’s highest priced as well as most desired destination cities. I recently have been in touch with several Silicon Valley home buyers looking to take advantage of the current market to buy a property in a Palo Alto neighborhood. Thought it would be interesting to see how different Palo Alto neighborhood markets moved in the first three months (Q1) since 2006. I’ve tracked the average sales price (ASP)
Pitch Black video as well as the number of sales.
| JAN-FEB-MAR | 2006 ASP | 2006 # Sold | 2007 ASP | 2007 # Sold | 2008 ASP | 2008 # Sold | 2009 ASP | 2009 # Sold |
| Palo Alto Hills | $1,757,000 | 2 | $8,142,000 | 3 | $2,900,000 | 1 | $1,230,000 | 1 |
| Green Acres | $1,244,000 | 2 | $1,791,000 | 4 | $1,860,000 | 1 | N/A | 0 |
| Barron Park | $1,663,500 | 5 | $1,968,000 | 8 | $1,789,000 | 8 | $2,350,000 | 1 |
| South Palo Alto | $1,256,000 | 36 | $1,360,000 | 27 | $1,539,000 | 21 | $1,342,000 | 12 |
| Midtown | $1,157,000 | 12 | $1,448,000 | 12 | $1,888,000 | 7 | $1,420,000 | 5 |
| Ventura Evil Dead II trailer | $820,000 | 3 | $1,245,000 | 4 | $857,000 | 1 | $1,195,000 | 1 |
| College Terrace | $1,507,000 | 7 | $1,257,000 | 5 | $1,518,000 | 4 | $1,190,000 | 6 |
| Old Palo Alto | $1,920,000 | 11 | $3,150,000 | 9 | $2,601,000 | 9 | N/A | 0 |
| Green Gables | $1,606,000 | 21 | $1,428,000 | 13 | $1,955,000 | 8 | $2,015,000 | 5 |
| Crescent Park | $2,647,500 | 4 | $1,677,000 | 8 | $1,865,000 | 7 | N/A | 0 |
| Community Center | $2,208,000 | 9 | $1,823,500 | 8 | $1,866,500 | 4 | $1,498,000 | 3 |
| Professorville | $1,540,000 | 4 | $2,756,000 | 4 | $2,355,000 | 2 | $1,350,000 | 1 |
| Downtown | $1,977,000 | 7 | $2,122,000 | 14 | $2,145,000 | 6 | $2,209,500 | 1 |
Warning: Sometimes statistics may be misleading if there was not a large number of sales data. For example, the huge spike in the Palo Alto Hills average sales price from 2006 to 2007 was because of a 12,000+ square foot home on 3.5 acres that sold for almost $20,000,000.
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A few weeks ago, I had posted some information about the new tax credits that were being made available from the Obama Plan to new home buyers, but there was limited information about what the government was doing for existing homeowners that were having problems with their mortgage.
Michelle Singletary of the Washington Post, had a great article yesterday detailing the new government website in conjunction with the Obama financial stability
Genova release plan to help homeowners struggling with their mortgage payments.
The Treasury Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development have launched a Web site that provides basic information for troubled homeowners about the Obama administration’s “Making Home Affordable” program.
The site, http://www.makinghomeaffordable.gov, usefully arranges in one place information on the two-pronged approach of the new initiative.
There’s the refinancing part, designed to help homeowners who are paying their mortgages on time but are not able to refinance at the current low mortgage rates because of a decrease in the value of their homes.
The second prong is aimed at homeowners who are struggling to make their monthly mortgage payments because their interest rates have increased or their incomes have been reduced.
If you know of anyone struggling with their current mortgage payment, forward the Making Home Affordable website to them to see if they would be eligible for government assistance. Feel free to contact us
as well for further information and guidance.
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If you ever wonder what the letters are after the name on a Realtor’s business card, those letters often represent designations earned through additional training, continued education, and higher learning. Some designations are better than others. I hold the CRS King Kong vs. Godzilla full Night at the Museum download
and e-Pro certifications.
Continued education is very important in a successful real estate career, however I could not believe when I saw an email for real estate training to earn a “RCS-D” designation which stands for Real Estate Collaborative Specialist-Divorce.
Is this just another way to create a designation to earn a quick buck from real estate agents?
The above video does have some good points, but is this really a niche that real estate agents want to target? Would love to know your thoughts…
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My client decided to stop by and take a look a property that had an open house located in the Cupertino Casa De Anza townhouse development within the highly desired Monta Vista High School district. The listing agent told my client that the only way she could make an offer on this property was if my client made an offer with him or with an agent that works for this large real estate company (won’t name the name but rhymes with the name of a gas station). Fortunately for me, my clients are very loyal though this tactic didn’t surprise me. What did surprise me was that the seller chose to make the listing an exclusive listing and to pay a commission only to agents within their franchise.
Is this really the best listing strategy for the seller?
- property not listed on MLS Mr. Moto’s Gamble movie full
(In 2008, 87% of home buyers The Client dvdrip
used the Internet to search for a home)
- property not even listed on Craigslist, a popular and free location to advertise listings, especially ones that are not on the market
- not paying a commission to any buyer(s) represented by an agent outside of the listing company
The seller bought the Cupertino townhouse in June 2008 for $650,000 ($20k over the asking price). Now, in a much slower market and in less than a year, they are asking $675,000. Do you sense the motivation?
I ask again, is this really the best listing strategy for the seller?
Would love to hear your comments below…
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Being in Silicon Valley, its always nice to hear about the new technologies that are being developed. Take a few minutes to view this inspiring video with a great story line ala Minority Report (found it on the Future of Real Estate Marketing Blog
).
Can you imagine what the future holds? Apparently this next type of technology
may be available sooner that we would think.
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Surviving Christmas movie download
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Reach Potential is non-profit organization we support that has been involved in helping the local Silicon Valley youth community. Here are a few stories worthy to note on what Reach Potential has been doing in the local community. If you have an interest in hearing more about the vision of Reach Potential and possible opportunities to support the lives of at-risk-youth, please contact the email below.
Reach Potential Movement Vision Night
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Shoup Garden House The Betrayed on dvd Cobra Woman on dvd
400 University Avenue, Los Altos, CA 94022
or
Friday, March 20, 2009
Los Altos Youth Center
1 North San Antonio Road, Los Altos, CA 94022
Reception beging at 6:30pm, Dinner and program from 7:00 to 8:30pm
Please RSVP via email at rob [at] rpmovement.org
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In today’s tight credit market, Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO) credit scores have become increasingly important to buyers of real estate here locally here in Silicon Valley as well as nationally. A low FICO score can mean the difference between purchasing a home and not qualifying. Unfortunately, most of don’t pay much attention to our FICO scores until we need credit for a major purchase like a home or automobile. FICO scoring however impacts any type of consumer lending in many ways – most importantly by affecting our ability to obtain the most favorable interest rates and loan terms or if we score too low, our ability to qualify for credit at all.
FICO BACKGROUND American High School trailer
So WHO is FICO anyway and how does what FICO has to say about us effect our ability to obtain credit? FICO a.k.a. Fair Isaac Corporation was started by engineer, Bill Fair and mathematician, Earl Isaac in 1956 as a management consultant services company. In the course of their business they began working on a credit scoring system in 1958. Their FICO credit scoring system was launched in 1970 as a method of determining credit risk and quickly made available to all of the major consumer credit reporting agencies in the United States and Canada including Equifax, Experian, Transunion and PRBC. The FICO scoring system is probably the most widely used credit scoring system in the world.
FIVE WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR SCORE
At a recent Palo Alto Board of Realtors meeting, a Certified Credit Specialist offered the following tips on how to improve your FICO credit score:
1. Balance your debt evenly
among 3 to 5 credit cards.
2. Never carry a balance of more than 30%
of your available credit on any one credit card
3. Always pay on time to avoid any delinquencies
4. Old credit is stable credit, so don’t close your old credit cards, keep them and use them occasionally
5. Try to limit inquiries on your credit. Soft inquiries like those to check your own credit or credit checks by employers don’t count, but any inquiries made by lenders particularly credit card companies can reduce your credit score. Home and automobile lender credit inquiries seem to not hurt as much because most people shop for the best rates on those types of loans.
FICO scores can range from 300 to 850. Right now, the magic number is 750 for purposes of obtaining the best credit terms. A higher score is good but won’t make a significant difference. On the other hand a credit score of less than 620 can make it virtually impossible to qualify for a loan.
CREDIT SCORE DATE
Another way to improve your credit score is to make loan and credit card payments 5 to 10 days before you credit score date. Apparently all of us have a credit score date – like a birthday, that we can obtain from the credit bureaus.
FREE CREDIT REPORT (OR NOT SO FREE)
You can check your credit for free online (though it will costs a few dollars to actually see your score) at www.AnnualCreditReport.com and obtain your credit report for free. It only takes a few minutes and you can even make adjustments and changes online too. Don’t get it confused with FreeCreditReport.com, which acutally is NOT
free.
CREDIT COUNSELING The Square Peg psp
If you know of anyone that needs credit couseling, contact us
with their name and number and we would be happy to have the opportunity to serve them with a free credit counseling session.Species III
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It’s that time of year again — one less hour of sleep. Don’t forget to move your clocks forward 1 hour Saturday night. While you are at it, change the batteries in your smoke detectors.
And remember, if I can be of service to you in any way, please do not hesitate to let me know. It would be my privilege to assist with any of your real estate needs.
—
Its not a surprise that Silicon Valley foreclosure, bank owned REO properties, and short sales are increasing. Lets take a look five years back to see what the inventory looked like…
Bank Owned / REO Inventory 2005 – 2009
| City / Area | 2005 | 2006 13 Moons rip The Fearless Vampire Killers download | 2007 | 2008 |
2009 |
||
| Sunnyvale (94086/94087) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 9 | ||
| Santa Clara (Rivermark) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Mountain View | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 8 | ||
| Los Altos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Palo Alto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| San Jose (Willow Glen) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51 | 35 |
Short Sale Inventory 2005 – 2009 Cinderella Man full Air Force One rip Shoot ‘Em Up rip
| City / Area |
2005 Gorillas in the Mist: The Story of Dian Fossey dvdrip | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | ||
| Sunnyvale (94086/94087) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 9 | ||
| Santa Clara (Rivermark) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Mountain View | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 8 | ||
| Los Altos | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Palo Alto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| San Jose (Willow Glen) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 51 | 35 |
Are there any interesting statistics that you would like to see for a certain Silicon Valley city or area?
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HOME BUYER TAX CREDITS
This is one of the few times that we’ve had two actual home buyer tax credits available at the same time. The National Association of Realtors has a great article explaining in great deal about the two tax credits. Here are some very informative PDFs of the highlights:
CALIFORNIA TAX CREDIT
In addition to the above available credits, Silicon Valley and Bay Area home buyers will be happy hear that California lawmakers have approved a $10,000 home buyer tax credit for any new construction purchased within this calendar year. What is even more enticing is that, unlike the national tax credit, the restrictions are rather limited:
- Ralphie May: Austin-Tatious move
- unlike the federal tax credit, there are no income limitations on this credit
- you do not have to be a first-time home buyer
- home does have to be your primary residence for one year
- must purchase and close escrow by December 31, 2009
Adding up all these tax credits, a potential Silicon Valley home buyer who purchases new construction this year could receive up to $18,000 in tax credits.
HOMEOWNER HELP?
As for homeowners that are looking that may be considering selling or refinancing but have not been able to given the traditional requirements, there has been limited information still about the official details and guidelines of how the recently passed legislation will help home sellers.
More details will be released March 4, but some of the highlights that have been mentioned were:
- allowing homeowners to refinance up to 105% of their loan-to-value (LTV) ratio
- increasing the incentive for lenders to be willing to conduct loan modifications
Will 105% LTV really help Silicon Valley home owners who have seen their home depreciate and lost equity well past the 105% LTV mark? Probably not.
As for the loan modifications, I’m skeptical that loan mods are even the right solution. Apparently, 57% of loan mods default within the first 6 months The Nanny Diaries buy
.
Anyway, that’s the update for now. Will continue to keep you updated as more information becomes available.
And last buy not least, a CYA disclosure, please remember that the above data is for informational use only and should not be relied upon without obtaining the appropriate tax or legal advice.
3/3/09 UPDATE
Here are the official sites regarding the state and federal tax credit programs:
State: http://ftb.ca.gov/individuals/new_home_credit.shtml
Federal: http://federalhousingtaxcredit.com/
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