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New Loan Limits From FHA, Freddie Mac & Fannie Mae – What Does This Mean For Big Bear?

I received the email below from the California Assocation of Realtors this past Friday and thought I would pass it along. UPDATE! Government Announces Conforming Loan Limit Increases The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) today announced it has temporarily increased limits on conforming loans offered by government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, from $417,000 to as high as $729,750 in fourteen counties in California for loans originated between July 1, 2007 and Dec. 31, … [Read more...]

Big Bear Home Prices – Are They Going Up Or Down?

There are a few different ways to answer this question.  Looking at the average sales price or the median sales price are a couple of the most popular ways to do so. One way that I thought would be interesting is to look at direct comparison of some Big Bear properties that have sold the past few years.  I pulled data on some properties that sold within the past few years and have subsequently resold, and then compared the sales price data.  It is interesting to see how the home prices have fared in Big Bear the … [Read more...]

Would You Buy This Big Bear Home?

The listing price is $244,950, 2 bed, 1 bath, 1,020 square feet with a detached garage. This photo was pulled from our Big Bear MLS this morning. It has been on the market 36 days with this same photo. Given that close to 80% of all home buyers are now going online to start their search, the fact that first impressions and curb appeal are huge, and the reality that there are many properties/options on the market for sale, does this photo make you want to buy this home? I would think most buyers are going to pass … [Read more...]

Big Bear Real Estate Monday Market Update For 3/3/2008

Below is the update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 3/3/2008. The residential properties listed for sale in Big Bear are down 8 from 1056 homes for sale to 1048. The number of homes in escrow are up by 5 from last week to 105 while sales year to date are now at 58 Big Bear homes sold since the beginning of the year. Vacant land listings in Big Bear remained nearly the same with only one less this week.  The number now stands at 321 vacant land listings on the market for sale. There were 3 additional … [Read more...]

Big Bear Home Sales For February 2008

The real estate market in Big Bear continues to move along at a very slow place. Even with the extra day this February, home sales in Big Bear last month totaled only 28 31 (some late entries), one two more less than the number sold in January. The median price for properties listed for sale was up 1% from $339,900 to $345,000, while the median sales price for the homes sold in February was down 13 10% from the previous month, $250,000 $260,000 as compared to $287,500 in January. This is still the lowest monthly … [Read more...]

Big Bear Real Estate – Monday Market Update For 2/25/2008

Below is the update for the Big Bear real estate market as of 2/25/2008. The residential properties listed for sale in Big Bear went up 4 from 1052 homes for sale to 1056. The number of homes in escrow is up by 9 from last week to 100 while sales year to date are now at 53 Big Bear homes sold since the beginning of the year. Vacant land listings actually went down 6 from 328 to 322 current vacant land listings on the market for sale. Pending sales for vacant land in Big Bear are up by 1 property this week from 24 … [Read more...]

Big Bear Lake Levels – Where To Find It & How It Is Relates To Property Values In Big Bear

One question that seems to come up often from people who visit the Big Bear area is, "How far down is the lake level?" The typical answer from me has always been more of a range, rather than a specific amount. The Big Bear Municipal Water District, also called BBMWD, has been keeping records of the levels on Big Bear Lake for some time now. Their website has the lake level history going back to 1985. Big Bear MWD takes weekly measurements and posts the results to their website here.  Historical lake levels … [Read more...]

Absorption Rates For Big Bear Real Estate – February 2008

The average time it will take for the Big Bear real estate market to absorb the number of homes for sale continues to remain longer than 2 years. What does the absorption rate mean? In simple terms, the absorption rate is the amount of time it will take for a specified set amount of properties to be absorbed based on current real estate market conditions. Taking the 1052 homes currently available on the market for sale in Big Bear, divided by the 29 homes for that sold in January, gives the Big Bear real estate … [Read more...]

The Mortgage Meltdown- How Did it Happen? What Does It Mean Going Forward?

I wish I were bright and articulate enough to answer the questions above without any help.  Luckily, I came across this video and slide show during past week.  They provide a simple (video) and humorous (slide show) way of understanding what happened with the mortgage subprime meltdown, why it happened, and what may lay ahead in the future for the rest of us. The video is provided courtesy of Mr. Dan Green of The Mortgage Reports.  Going back to the basics with stick figures and drawings is an easy way of … [Read more...]

Monday Market Update

Below is an update for the Big Bear Real Estate Market. While activity seemed to be picking up recently, the number of pending properties has actually been holding steady for the past few months. The listing inventory has continually declined over the same time frame, which is very typical for our market. We will probably bottom out in the next couple months and then shoot back up to the 1500 mark for residential properties around July or so. Again, this is typical for the Big Bear market. Be sure to check back … [Read more...]