2.5 +- acre horse property for sale! It feels like the country but just a few minutes to town! The main house is 2200 sq ft split into two units. One 2 bedroom unit and another 1 bedroom with huge family room, kitchen/bar and fireplace, with attached garage and private patio and yards. Permanent pasture, huge hay barn, 4 box stalls, tack room, horse walker, roping arena with cattle pens, and cozy studio apartment in barn. New roof and new pump in well as well as rehabbed septic tanks and leach line. These properties seldom come on the market! Hurry!
Wendy Teixeira 805.310.3505
Month: July 2017
New Listing! 3 Bedroom 1 Bath Home in SLO
This one is adorable! From the front yard to the back fence this house has so much appeal. Fresh and clean, it is ready for you to move right in. Gleaming hardwood laminate flooring sets the stage for the living area. Lovely newer cabinets and appliances will make cooking fun. The large backyard is great for gardening or a kids play space and the built-in shed provides storage for all the tools or toys. Pleasant, peaceful paint colors welcome you to each room. Notice the updated, vinyl dual pane, energy efficient windows. Those on the front side of the house are framed by beautiful wood plantation shutters. The master bedroom, accented by wainscoting and chair rail trim, has a slider to the back yard where a hot tub awaits your relaxing visit. The adjoining bath has a tile shower and pedestal sink. A bonus office space has been created in the single car garage where you will also find the laundry area with a stackable washer/dryer and tankless water heater! Better act fast as this one will sell very quickly!
Kay Cementina 805.748.1438
New Listing! Providence Landing 4 Bdrm 2 Ba
Room to roam in this large Providence Landing home! Fantastic cul-de-sac location with walkway to the recreational fields and facilities. Large backyard with flagstone patio. Versatile interior plan downstairs with formal and casual space, plus a bedroom and bath. Large kitchen with solid granite counters and stainless appliances, ample storage and a butler’s closet with walk-in pantry. Kitchen opens to family room with fireplace. Upstairs are three en-suite bedrooms plus a loft and an additional space that could be converted to another bedroom or other use. Large master bedroom; master bath has separate soaking tub and large shower. Generous sized master walk-in closet. So much space and options abound in this fantastic home! Providence Landing is conveniently located near Vandenberg Air Force Base and offers oodles of walking trails, recreational fields, tennis, pool and clubhouse. Adjacent to the Burton Mesa Preserve, the area is surrounded by roaming open space. A perfect commute distance to Santa Barbara and even closer to the Orcutt/ Santa Maria area. Welcome to your new home!
Gina Gluyas 805.310.7208
New Listing! 4 Bedroom 2 Bath Orcutt Home
Beautifully remodeled & stunning describes this four bedroom, two bath home. With over 2,000 sq ft of luxurious living, you’ll be amazed with all this home has! Real hardwood flooring throughout, granite counters, new s/s stove & newer appliances, breakfast area & formal dining room & an awesome laundry area off the THREE car garage! The large family room has a beautiful fireplace & french doors to the patio. Large, light & bright! The master suite offers a walk in closet, high ceilings, built in cabinets, a French door to the brick patio & a gorgeous bathroom! Three more nicely sized bedrooms & a remodeled, full guest bath are just perfect! You’ll enjoy the majestic oak tree in the backyard, brick patios & east facing yards for those BBQs. All you have to do is unpack!
Wendy Teixeira 805.310.3505
Central Coast Lending: Market Update
Labor Market Conditions
Nonfarm payroll growth of 222,000 was strong in the June employment report butnot6 average hourly earnings which only 0.2 percent higher, part of the mix that makes for only a moderate 1.5 in the labor market conditions index.
JOLTS
In a mixed report employers are finally catching up with their hirings as job openings, at 5.666 million in May fell back 5.0 percent and hiring, at 5.472 million, shot up 8.3 percent. The hiring total is a new record for the series while job openings are second lowest of the year. Other movement in this report is a 1 tenth rise in the quits rate to 2.2 percent which hints perhaps at worker confidence and willingness to switch jobs which may be a positive for wage traction.
Mortgage Applications
Purchase applications for home mortgages fell a seasonally adjusted 3 percent In the week of July 7th. Applications for refinancing fell 13 percent from the previous week to the lowest level since January 2017. The refinance share of mortgage activity fell 2.8 percentage points to 42.1 percent. The decline in applications was registered despite adjustments for the Fourth of July holiday. On an unadjusted basis, purchase applications were down a much sharper 22 percent from the previous week. The weekly decline shaved the year on year purchase index gain by 3 percentage points to 3 percent.
Beige book
Wages are on the rise but with only a modest to moderate rise. Economic growth is described as light to moderate across the Federal Reserve’s 12 districts. Consumer spending is rising in most districts but at a slower pace. This edition of the beige book, especially with descriptions of inflation and introduction to the word slight for the downside description of growth, is perhaps the weakest beige book of the year. There are, however, some indications of strength wit hthe3 report nothing that qualified workers are in short supply and the labor market is continuing to tighten for both skilled and unskilled labor and especially in the construction and high tech sectors. Looking at the report on net, it appears to still remain at modest to moderate in most region and economic readings. These results will not pull forward expectations for the next rate hike.
Jobless Claims
Initial jobless claims held little changed at 247,000 in the week of July 8th, with the prior week revised only slightly higher at a gain of 2,000 to a level of 250.000. The four week average4 is up 2,250 to 245,750 which is lightly above the moth-ago trend in what in not a favorable indication for the July employment report. Continuing claims, where data lag by a week, fell 20,000 to 1.945 million with this four wee3k average at 1.949 million, also slightly up. The unemployment rate for insured workers is unchanged at a very low 1.4 percent.
Janet Yellen Speaks
Janet Yellen conceded that wage pressures are weak but warned it’s premature to conclude that inflation trends are falling back below 2 percent. The Fed’s chair also mentions, like she did in her first day of testimony, she declined to say how low the Fed’s balance sheet will be reduced to, saying only that she expects the Fed’s reserves currently at $4.5 trillion, to be reduced substantially. She also repeated that it’s the FOMC’s goal to hold only Treasuries on the Fed’s balance sheet.
Consumer Price index
In what is one of the very weakest 4-month stretch in 60 years of records, core consumer prices could manag3e only a 0.1 percent increase in June. This represents the third straight 0.1 percent showing for the core, which excludes food and energy, that was preceded by the very rare 0.1 percent decline March. Total prices were unchanged in the month with food neutral and energy down 1.6 percent. Housing, which is a central category, continues to moderate, also coming in at 0.1 percent following a 0.2 percent gain in May. Apparel is down for a fourth month in a row with transportation, reflecting falling vehicle prices, down for a second month. Medical care, which had been moderating, picked up with a 0.4 percent gain while prescription drugs which Janet Yellen has been citing for specials weakness, bounced back with a 1.0 percent gain. However, wireless telephone service, another area cited by Yellen for weakness, posted yet another sizable decline of 0.89 percent in June. Year on year the core is steady at 1.7 percent with total prices, down 3 tenths to 1.6 percent.
Consumer Sentiment
Economic expectations are falling while current conditions remain high, a combination that the consumer sentiment report warns points to economic slowing ahead. The consumer sentiment index fell a sharp 2 points in the preliminary results for July to a much lower than predicted level of 93.1. The expectations component is down nearly 4 points to 80.2 for the lowest reading since before the election, in October of last year. Republican expectations have been falling sharply from their steep highs, down to 108.9 for a more than 7 point decline from June. Democrat expectation is actually improving slightly, but remains very low at 63.2. Current conditions rose slightly in the month to 113.2 which is a positive indication for this months’ consumer activity. But it’s future activity that may be in trouble. Inflation expectations edged higher in the month but remain very low at 2.7 percent for the one year outlook and 2.6 percent for the five year.
Job Outlook: Second Quarter
Gallup US Job Creation Index
June’s job creation index was plus 36, just shy of the record high of plus 37 recorded in May. The index has been at or over plus 30 for 16 straight months signifying a greatly improved and steady job market compared with the years during and after the Recession in 2009. Various indicators suggest the US economy is generating new jobs at a steady pace, although only 138,000 jobs were created in May, this report fell short of expectations and was a drop from the more robust government numbers recorded in April. The Gallup job creation index did not show a significant drop in May and has again shown no significant change for June in contrast to these government numbers. In June, 45 percent of employees said their company was hiring, almost matching the 46 percent recorded in May. The percentage who sad their company was letting people go held steady at 9 percent. 41 percent of workers said their employer was not changing the size of its workforce.
Challenger Job-Cut Report
In confirmation that employers are holding onto their employees, Challenger’s layoff count for June is 31,105, the lowest total since October of last year. One industry where layoffs have been heavy, however, has been the retail sector which leads June’s total at 4,217.
Jobless Claims
Initial jobless claims rose 4,000 in the week of July 1st to 248,000 which remains steady and safely within the consensus range economists predicted. Seven states including California had to be estimated in the week which raises the risk of significant revisions in next week’s report. Continuing claims, where data lags by a week, rose 11,000 in the week of June 24th to 1.956 million with the unemployment rate for insured workers unchanged and very low at 1.4 percent. Estimations aside, this data remains near historic lows and continue to signal strong demand for labor.
Gallup Good Jobs Rate
The June good jobs rate rose to 46.3 percent, from 45.4 in May. The workforce participation rate reached a record high of 68.6 percent. Unemployment and underemployment rates remained steady. While the June 2017 Gallup Good Jobs rate fell short of the high point of 47.1 percent recorded back in July of 2016, it is two points above the average for the rate since the start of this report in 2010- 44.3 percent. It is nearly five points higher than the low point of 41.7 recorded in February of 2011 when the economy was still recovering from the recession. The workforce participation rose 68.6 percent in June, a record high for this measure, though it is equivalent to the 68.5 percent rates set back in April and June of 2013. The participation rate is up from 68.0 percent in May and is one point higher than it was in June a year ago when it averaged 67.5 percent. Gallup’s unemployment rate for June was 5.2 percent, virtually unchanged from May’s 5.3 percent. It matches the rate of 5.3 percent in June 2016. The unemployment rate is near the record low of 4.9 percent recorded in November of 2016, and remains well below the record high of 10.9 percent recorded in January of 2010. The underemployment rate for US adults was essentially unchanged at 13.6 percent in June, compared to 13.9 percent in May. The current underemployment rate is the same as was recorded in June of last year though well below the high of 20.3 percent in March 2010.
Employment Situation
The split between strength in demand for labor and weakness in wages is more critical than ever after the June employment report which shows a significant upgrade to payroll growth but a flat line for aver5age hourly earnings. Nonfarm payrolls surged 222,000 in June with revisions to prior months adding another 47,000. The last 3 months of payroll growth were originally very soft but ahve4 now been revised. Not revised is earnings which could manage only a 0.2 percent gain in June with May, which was already weak, revised down another one tenth to a monthly gain of only 0.1 percent. Year on year wages are lifeless at 2.5 percent. The weakness points to low wage, low productivity jobs. But there are more and more jobs led in June by the service sector. Professional and business services lead among the service categories at 35,000 with related temporary help up 13,000. Strength here suggests that employers are unable to fill positions and are turning to contractors. Government jobs were also very strong up 35,000 following a run of uneven results. Retail id rise 8,000 in the month but this is following a string of declines. Gains for goods producers are led by construction at 16,000 and followed by mining at 8,000, and yet another disappointing month for manufacturing at only 1,000.Hours are up in what are additional signs of strength at 34.5 weekly hours overall for a 1 tenth gain with manufacturing also increasing to 40.8 hours. Other data includes a tick higher in the unemployment rate to a still very low 4.4 percent with the pool of available workers continuing to creep lower to 12.4 million. The labor pool may be shrinking but it’s not resulting in stronger wages. Wages are a key driver for inflation and without greater pressure; overall inflation does not look to improve. Still the strength in both employment and hours make June a strong final chapter for the second quarter.
New Listing! Exquisite Santa Maria Home
Amazing, exquisite, unmatched, phenomenal… These are just a few adjectives to describe what you’ll experience when you step into this home that shows like a model. Over 2700 sq ft of perfection. This four bedroom home offers so many amenities: two family rooms – one up and one down, a library/office, beautiful flooring, plantation shutters, granite counters, working island/breakfast bar, exceptional appliances, two fireplaces – one in the family room, one in the master suite – just to name a few… The backyard is a lush and welcoming retreat complete with gas and oak pit BBQ, sink, wet bar (hot & cold), fridge, low voltage lighting, infrared heaters under patio cover, waterfall, Jacuzzi, sitting areas as well as a fenced off RV area.
Wendy Teixeira 805.310.3505
Mortgage Rates Continue to Decline to New 2017 Lows During the Month of June!
During the month of June, the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed conventional program’s APR reached a new 2017 low of 3.88%. Mortgage Rates during the month of June varied by only 6 basis points it reached a monthly high of 3.94% during the first week of the month, and ended the month with the lowest rate of 2017 at an APR of 3.88%. June was the first month that all the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed conventional rates reported were below the 4.00% rate. The 2017 low of 3.88% APR is 42 basis points below the 2017 high of 4.30% APR set during mid-March. A year ago at this time the 30-year fixed rate conventional APR was 3.48%, only 40 basis points above June’s low of 3.88% APR. The year on year gap is slowly closing in as rates continue to decline.