Month: May 2010

I read a post on a Realtor message board saying that an agent should check the facebook pages of the other party in a transaction to see if they can get any indication of weaknesses to be used in negotiations. Things like “our lease is running out quick” or “we’ve had our home on the market for 2 months and not a single offer” can be used against you.

I don’t use facebook but my kids do. There are ways of setting up your profile so only “friends” see your posts, not everyone.

If you’re using the new map search, you can now choose 2 additional property types in your search; Residential/Manufactured and Commercial.

Just click on the triangle next to “Property Types” in the left column to display the choices. By default, Residential/All is checked. Check the one or ones you want to search on and then click “Search” at the bottom to see the results on the map.

Previously, mobile/manufactured homes showed up in the Residential/All choice but now you can choose to just search for Mobiles.

http://www.slocountyhomes.com/arroyo_grande_ds.html

I stumbled upon one of the coolest plant shows I’ve ever seen at the Ludwig Center in downtown SLO this weekend. I’ve gotten pretty into these interesting and environmentally friendly plants in recent years, but I had no idea there were so many varieties (and other fans) until I walked the show. I wish I could share more of my pictures because there were some amazing ones. This show was extremely well attended and is getting bigger every year according to the society members I spoke with. The group meets on the second Sunday of every month and if you’re interested in more information their web site is http://centralcoastcactus.org/. Great stuff!

I thought we were lucky to have Aerosmith come to the Mid State Fair a few years ago but looks like they must like the area because they are returning this year!  Tickets go on sale June 11th for their July 26th fair appearance.  I went to the last concert and it was GREAT.  I read a few days ago that Aerosmith was asking $1 Million for a fair back East. I wonder how much the mid state fair is paying to get them to come back here again?

The sales of million dollar homes in SLO County remain low.  With 261 homes currently on the market over 1 Million and only 5-6 sales a month means there is around 5 years of inventory.

I just did a spot check on inventory levels for some cities that were pretty high when I did the May 1st report. Not much has changed.  All but one of the cities I checked were either at the same level or higher. San Luis Obispo, which was at its highest level in 4 years at the beginning of the month, added a few more.

This is good news for Buyers but not good news for Sellers. There are always some in-demand properties that are the exceptions but the law of Supply and Demand takes over at some point and will push prices lower if there is too much inventory and few Buyers for a particular type of home.

There’s a property I drive by that has had significant price drops over the last few months.  The listing agent added a “Priced to Sell” sign when the last price drop happened but that was a month ago. I guess it really wasn’t Priced to Sell in this market.  I chuckle every time I pass this sign. Aren’t all homes on the market priced to sell?  Have you ever seen a “Priced to Sit” sign on a house?

I’ll be updating the inventory report in 6 days to see where we are at.

A couple reports were released today about median home price data (nationwide).

I ran reports for single family homes sold in SLO County (April 2010) and here’s the data:

• In April 2010, we had 190 homes sold in SLO County through the MLS (where I get my data).
• Of those,  59% were non-foreclosure homes,  28% were REOs, and 13% were Short Sales.
• The median home price for ALL homes sold in April was $402,500.
• The median home price for non-foreclosure homes was $442,250.
• The median home price for REO homes was $325,000.
• The median home price for Short Sale homes was $392,500.

Uncertainty about the pace of global economic recovery and growth continued to drive the financial markets last week causing investors to move to relatively safer assets, including mortgage-backed securities (MBS). Greece and other troubled European countries will be forced to reduce their spending, Chinese officials indicated they will begin to adjust monetary policy to combat rising inflation, and the US government will begin to debate various proposals for financial regulation. These developments pose a threat to economic growth, and in response to periods of uncertainty, investors migrate toward safer assets such as bonds in an effort to reduce risk. Greater demand for bonds, often comprised of MBS, pushes mortgage rates lower. And, luckily for the US policy makers, economic reports released last week showed inflation remains extremely low, and thus continued low interest rates will not unnecessarily burden the economy. In fact, the Core Consumer Price Index for April showed inflation fell to the lowest level in 44 years. Currently, the 30-Year Fixed sits at 4.375% (4.523% APR) and the 15-Year Fixed is at 3.875% (4.137% APR)… the lowest mortgage rates of 2010! This week is filled with economic reports that could influence mortgage rates. This morning, we learned that Existing Home Sales rose 7.6% in April to the highest level in five months as buyers took advantage of the expiring federal tax credit. Later this week, we will see New Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders, GDP, Consumer Confidence, and the Treasury will auction $113 billion of short-term notes.

 

       

The San Luis Obispo Farmers Market is entering its peek season with the arrival of an abundance of seasonal fruits, berries, vegetables, etc…. Does the scent of barbeque ribs or the colors of freshly picked produce and flowers delight your senses? Then don’t miss coming to San Luis Obispo’s oldest and largest farmers market held every Thursday night on Higuera Street between 6-9 PM. It is an amazing place to watch people, shop, eat, listen to music and enjoy a great family event. Since the tradition started in the early 1980’s, it has expanded to many other cities throughout the county. In fact it has become so popular that you can now find a farmers market every day of the week in various locations throughout the county. To find a complete schedule and more information go to the following SLO County sponsored web site: http://www.sanluisobispocounty.com/visitors/san-luis-obispo-activities/shopping-spa/farmers-market/.                                           

Avila Beach’s Friday Night Farmers Market on Front Street (overlooking the ocean near the pier) is one of the newest additions and is pretty darn awesome as well.   

See you there!