If the unfreezing of credit is paramount to an economic rebound, the first signs of a thaw may be here. Monday, the Federal Reserve released its quarterly survey of 84 member banks. In it, the Fed says that fewer than half of its responding banks tightened "prime" mortgage guidelines over the last 3 months. This is good news for active home buyers and other Americans in want of a new mortgage. "Prime" is a vague term with respect to home loans, but it usually refers to mortgage applicants who can … [Read more...]
Big Bear Real Estate – Monday Market Update For 2/2/2009
February 2, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Below is your weekly update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 2/2/2009. Property Type Listings for Sale Change from Last Week Pending Sales Change from Last Week Sales Year to Date Change from Last Week RESIDENTIAL 906 -24 126 +7 40 +10 VACANT LAND 334 -11 13 +3 0 0 CONDOS 48 -1 6 0 1 0 GOVERNMENT LEASE 11 0 0 0 0 0 COMMERCIAL & RES INVESTMENT 50 -1 3 0 0 0 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY 11 0 0 0 0 0 TOTAL 1360 -37 148 +10 41 +10 A few notes about the market - Residential properties are … [Read more...]
Big Bear Home Sellers, Have You Considered Staging?
January 30, 2009 by 2 Comments
Super Bowl Weekend traditionally marks the start of the Spring Buying Season in real estate. Anecdotally, real estate agents will tell you that buyer activity tends to tick higher at this time of the year. Meanwhile, with mortgage rates still trolling near all-time lows and Congress debating a first-time homebuyer tax credit, 2009 may bring out even more buyers than we've seen in the past. Just having your home on the market may not be enough to attract an offer, though -- the home has to have appeal. That … [Read more...]
Explaining What The Federal Reserve Did In Plain English (January 28, 2009 Edition)
January 29, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The Federal Open Market Committee voted to leave the Fed Funds Rate unchanged today. It remains within a target range of 0.000-0.250 percent. In its press release, the FOMC reiterated most of the key points from its December 2008 statement, including: The U.S. employment outlook continues to deteriorate Consumers and businesses continue to cut spending The housing sector is still showing weakness In addition, the FOMC addressed the "extremely tight" credit conditions for U.S. households and business, even as … [Read more...]
How Today’s Federal Reserve Meeting Could Change Home Affordability
January 28, 2009 by Leave a Comment
The Federal Open Market Committee adjourns from its 2-day meeting today. The monetary policy-setting group is expected leave the Fed Funds Rate within its current target range of 0.00-0.250 percent. This is the lowest range for the Fed Funds Rate in history and, frankly, there isn't much room left to go lower. Therefore, markets aren't really concerned about what happens to the benchmark lending rate today. Instead, markets will focus on the Fed's ideas to revive the U.S. economy. In its post-FOMC press … [Read more...]
Big Bear Real Estate – Monday Market Update For 1/26/2009
January 26, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Below is your weekly update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 1/26/2009. Property Type Listings for Sale Change from Last Week Pending Sales Change from Last Week Sales Year to Date Change from Last Week RESIDENTIAL 930 -6 119 +6 30 +9 VACANT LAND 345 +6 10 +1 0 0 CONDOS 49 -2 6 +1 1 0 GOVERNMENT LEASE 11 0 0 0 0 0 COMMERCIAL & RES INVESTMENT 51 -1 3 0 0 0 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY 11 -1 0 0 0 0 TOTAL 1397 -4 138 +8 31 +9 A few notes about the market - Of the 15 residential properties … [Read more...]
Bank Owned & Short Sale Homes Taking Market Share In Big Bear
January 25, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Active Listings % of Total Pending Listings % of Total Sold Listings Last Year % of Total Mom & Pop Seller 775 83% 36 31% 534 80% Bank Owned 69 7% 52 46% 115 17% Short Sales 89 10% 26 23% 18 3% Total 933 114 667 As evidenced in the table above, bank owned and short sale homes have taken a larger piece of the overall real estate pie here in Big Bear. 80% of the home sales in Big Bear for 2008 were your traditional, Mom & Pop seller. That made sense as there was a similar percentage, 90-95%, … [Read more...]
The Best In Show Is First To Go
January 24, 2009 by Leave a Comment
[viddler id=9775a0e6&w=545&h=349] Everyone knows it is tough to sell a home in this market. It is not impossible though. While there are some things you cannot control, like location, there are certainly some other things that you can. The asking price, the overall property condition, showing restrictions and the like are all things well within a seller's choice to make. Whether they decide to make the right choice is up to them. The two most important factors in getting a home sold in today's market … [Read more...]
The Big Bear MLS – Is Your Property In It?
January 20, 2009 by 1 Comment
The vast majority of properties sold in Big Bear are sold by real estate agents who live, work, and breath in Big Bear. Yet, some sellers (read:banks) list their properties with out of area agents who don't have much experience selling property in Big Bear. It is kind of like a knee doctor working on your elbow. Can they do it? Sure, but are they really the expert? What's worse is these real estate agents rarely put the listing in the local Big Bear MLS (Multiple Listing Service). How are the local agents … [Read more...]
