Month: February 2016

Amazing 5bed/5bath home on acreage with ocean view! Top of the line appliance and finishes, Knotty Alder cabinetry, undercounter triple zone wine cooler, live edge granite, 9 ft ceilings + vaulted main area, owned solar, 3 AC units, tongue and groove ceilings, Travertine tile in baths, commercial grade double resin water softener. Adjustable LLD recessed lighting, prewired for security system and ethernet, professionally landscaped/drought resistant. ~ Be sure to check out the virtual tour! Kim Renshaw

S &P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index

Home prices in major metropolitan areas continued to rise In December though the gains came in slightly behind expectations. Home price appreciation rose 0.8 percent in December, as Case-Shiller’s 20 city index extends its run of strong monthly gains. But, the year on year rate slowed to plus 5.7 percent slightly below the 6.0% line where the FHFA index has been trending, and below the 5.9% increase economists estimated. While home prices continue to rise the pace is slowing down. Household wealth is increasingly dependent not on wage gains, but on home–price appreciation.

Consumer Confidence

There is a noticeable slowing in the consumer confidence index, to 92.2 in February vs. January’s revised 97.8. Readings are lower but only slightly for jobs hard to get, the most closely watched detail of the report. Jobs hard to get rose 6 tenths to 24.2 percent, which is still a low reading and isn’t convincing enough to point to a rise in the unemployment rate. Income expectations are still positive but slightly less so as are expectations for business conditions. Expectations for the jobs market have been on the pessimistic side in this report. Buying plans are mostly lower especially for housing, which won’t give a boost to the now moderate housing outlook. Inflation expectations continue to tick lower down 1 tenth for the fourth straight decline to a 4.7 percent rate which is a very low reading. FOMC policy makers have been reluctant to downgrade inflation expectations, but this report shows that the low oil prices and low prices for imports are more and more evident to the consumer. Most consumer confidence readings have been holding up better than this report which may suggest that is an outlier.

Existing Home Sales

Existing home sales were up 0.4 percent in January to a 5.47 million annualized rate. Year on year sales growth is in the double digits at 11.0 percent. This is a sign of underlying household strength, the single family component rose 1.0 percent to 4.86 million for a year on year increase of 11.2 percent. Condos have been the stronger of the two components and show signs of slowing at 610,000 down 4.7 percent, but still have a year on year increase of 8.9 percent. The median home price fell 4.2 percent to $213,800 with the year on year rate at plus 8.2 percent. But the low supply which has been holding back sales is coming into the market, up 3.4 percent in the month to 1.82 million. Supply relative to sales moved slightly higher, to 4.0 months, which is still well below 4.5 months from January of last year. The housing market is showing an upward trend.

Mortgage Applications

Purchase applications have been boosted by lower interest rates; they have been very strong this year, up 2.0 percent in the February 19th week, for a year on year gain of 27 percent. These gains point to underlying strength for home sales. Refinancing applications have also been very strong this year, though they dipped 8 percent in the latest week this could be due to a slight increase in interest rates. Total mortgage applications fell 4.3 percent for the week ending February 19th.

 

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Check out this classic 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom 1959 bungalow near campus and downtown. The home is located at the end of a cul-de-sac, offering a perfect location for students or for that buyer looking for a low traffic area. The house is perfectly situated on the lot to maximize a large, private backyard with views of Cerro San Luis. The charming mid-century exterior is accented with brick and detailed faux shutters. The open car port houses three secure storage lockers and offers plenty of room to park vehicles, bikes, and or toys. Inside we see original hard wood floors in the bedrooms and dining area, great built-in cabinets in the hallway, and a laundry room just outside the main living space. Recent valuable upgrades include: New roof (2014), all new windows (2015), a new laundry machine (2015) and a new water heater (2015). Currently rented at $2300.00 per month, the lease is through June 30, 2016. This property has been a great investment but could also be a sweet starter home. Kerry Sansone

Foxenwoods Country Club! This meticulous one story home features two bedrooms and an office with easy closet conversion for a third bedroom. Open and airy, the flowing floor plan allows for conversation from the family room to the kitchen/dining area. Enjoy the charming kitchen with plenty of storage and an island for meal preparations. The elegant fireplace in the family room is an inspiring focal point while countless windows provide lots of natural light. The oversized master suite includes a garden tub, separate shower, dual sinks and a spacious walk in closet. The backyard has an park-like setting and includes an extended patio and tile – perfect for relaxing. Wendy Teixeira

Spanish Lakes home on one of the premium lots, sits up with views. This spacious home has 4 bedroom plus an office with separate entrance overlooking the pool. Open floor plan, great for entertaining. Plenty of storage, an abundance of built in cabinetry. Split floor plan with the master suite on the opposite wing from the guest bedrooms and office. 18X75ft pool. Spa. Huge kitchen with double French doors out to covered patio, pool and spa. Horse facilities include tack room with hay storage and door to covered stall for feeding. Arena 6in sand, vinyl fencing. Great opportunity to live close to town in Beautiful Spanish Lakes gated community, with your horses! Kim Bankston

The Wild West is calling and when you come bring a hammer. The main home has beautiful ‘open beamed’ ceilings in the living area with a massive stone fireplace and hearth. The kitchen is open and big enough to accommodate all the ranch hands, Bonanza style. This ranch out of the past and even has a Saloon equipped with all the toys except can-can girls! A Player piano, pinball machine and pool table among other furnishings that will be included in the sale. There are multiple residences (up to 7) however only 3 are recognized on the tax rolls. They all need work and buyer will need to investigate permit status. This ranch also has a large pond with mature trees surrounding it, a dock, hot tub, dog kennels and so much more. This property is being sold in As-IS condition. Call Cody Wilcoxon

Housing Market Index

The housing market index for February is down 3 points to 58, the lowest reading since May of last year; this is an indication that the optimism among home builders is cooling noticeably. Though the reading came short of last month’s 58, it is still well above the breakeven point of 50. In fact, the future sales component actually rose 1 point to 65. However, the current sales component is down 3 points to 65. The traffic of prospective buyers in new homes has been holding down the report throughout the whole recovery period and continues to do so. It is down a steep 5 points to 39, the lowest reading since May of last year as well. These weaknesses reflect lack of first-time buyers in the market. Builders are citing scarcity of both labor and available lots as negatives right now. Momentum in the housing sector was inconsistent last year and based off of this report looks to remain that way.

Mortgage Applications

Falling mortgage rates continue to drive refinancing applications sharply higher up 16% for a second straight week. Total mortgage applications were up 8.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis last week from the previous week. Mortgage lenders set a new record in terms of average loan size for refinances last week at $316,000. In addition to an increase in conventional refinance applications, Veterans Administration refinance volume increased by 28%, and the average loan size for a VA loan refinance increased to its highest on record. This increased volume for all refinances, which is now 50% higher than just four weeks ago, was unexpected, as most thought that interest rates would rise after the Federal Reserve increased its funds rate in December. Though refinance is up, significantly lower interest rates did not spur homebuyers. Mortgage applications to purchase a home fell 4 percent from the previous week, although they are still 30 percent higher than the same week a year ago.

Housing Starts

Housing starts and permits were down 3.8% in an annualized rate of 1.099 million for starts with permits down 0.2% to 1.202 million. Starts show roughly the weakness between single-family homes, down 3.9% to a 731,000 rate, and multifamily homes, down 3.7 percent to 368,000. Permits for single family homes fell 1.6 percent to 720,000, while multifamily permits rose 2.1 percent to 482,000 for the strongest reading in the report. Multifamily homes remain the center of strength for the housing sector with year on year permits up 19.9 percent, surpassing a very solid 9.6 percent gain for single family homes. Starts are lagging far behind, they show a year on year increase of 1.8 percent overall and reflecting supply constraints in the construction sector, including labor, and the heavy weather that h it the East Coast mid-month. Trends in the housing permits, though not extremely strong, do point to strength.

FOMC Minutes

The FOMC minutes are released with a three week lag after the meeting, so the information reported this week was actually from the meeting on January 27th. Risks, in particular global risks were the theme of January’s FOMC meeting. They highlighted that continuing deterioration of financial conditions could amplify downside risks to the US economy. Policy makers assessed the implications of global economic and financial developments on the outlook for the labor market and inflation. Several of the 17 members of the committee called for direct evidence of inflation before further hiking rates, while others were concerned that policy was less well positioned to respond to shocks. Some members did note that wage pressures had picked up. Many participants agreed that uncertainties had increased. The vote to hold policy unchanged was unanimous at 10 to zero.

 

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Labor Market Conditions Index
Payroll growth slowed in Friday’s employment report as did the Fed’s labor market conditions index. An increase of 0.4 in January from a downward revised plus 2.3 in December and an upward revised plus 2.9 in November. January’s reading indicates the lowest level of labor expansion since April of last year and also reflects the climbing trends in jobless claims. One big positive for the labor market is the falling unemployment rate at a low 4.9% in January.

JOLTS
The JOLTS report is the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. Job openings surged in December; this may have increased the surge in the labor participation rate in January. Openings came in at 5.607 million in December well above the revised 5.346 million in November. The openings rate jumped 2 tenths to 3.8 percent compared to 3.4 percent in December of 2015. The quits rate rose 1 tenth to 2.1 percent an indication that workers are moving up to better jobs. The layoffs rate, fell 1 tenth to 1.1 percent in the month, foretelling a decline in the unemployment rate. This report is strong and is a reminder that the labor market continues to move to full employment, the breaking point for wage inflation.

Mortgage Applications
Week to week trends of purchase applications have been varying widely this year; but they are definitely higher. Total mortgage application volume increased 9.3 percent from the previous week; interest rate dependent refinances were almost entirely behind these gains. Applications to refinance a home loan rose 16 percent from the previous week. Purchase applications were also up and rose 0.2 percent in the February 5th week. The year on year rate of purchase applications is significantly higher at a plus 25 percent. Low mortgage rates have been stimulating the activity with the average 30-year conforming mortgage down 6 basis points in the week to 3.91 percent, the lowest reading since April of last year.

Janet Yellen Speaks
Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen presented the semi-annual monetary report to House Financial Services Committee, in Washington. She stated that the chances of a March rate hike are uncertain at best, but the door is remaining open despite the risk tied to global financial stress. She suggested that the central bank may delay, but not abandon, planned interest rate increases in response to the recent turmoil in financial markets. She emphasized the strength of the US economy and she predicts GDP to pick up in the first quarter after showing a slowing in the fourth quarter of last year. Employment growth is expected to continue and wage pressures are anticipated to rise. This in turn, will result in gains for consumer spending, Yellen predicts. She doesn’t see a reversal for policy ahead, saying she doesn’t expect the Fed will have to cut rates any time soon. Yellen forecasts moderate economic expansion ahead that would warrant gradual rate hikes. On the subject of inflation, she agreed that near term pressures have declined due to low energy prices but she continues to see a rise to the 2 percent target rate in the medium term, strengthened by wages and strength in the labor market.

 

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Spectacular ocean views from buildable Cayucos lot, and even better views from the future home of your dreams! Approximate 25′ by 160′ nice downslope just a short distance to easy ocean access.
Kelly Vandenheuvel

Opportunity awaits with this spectacular private forested grounds of 1.41 acres, surrounded by majestic Monterey Pine trees and located on a quiet cul-de-sac. Biking distance to quaint village and pristine ocean. Consider purchasing the beautiful custom Wayne Gracy built home for sale next door, which sits on over an acre in the forest, and you will own your own secluded compound with equestrian potential on almost 2.5 acres. This owner will consider assisting with the financing. Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance!
Wade Wright