Aaron Cullen : Folsom & El Dorado Hills Real Estate

Sierra Moms is hosting their annual Preschool & Children's Activities Faire on September 30th from 4 - 7:30 p.m. at the Folsom Community Center (52 Natoma Street). This super fun event will be jam packed with representatives from local area (Folsom / El Dorado Hills) preschools ready to inform visitors about their programs. It's one stop shopping for all your tot to big kid scholastic needs. Admission is Free!

The Faire is an amazing opportunity to familiarize yourself with the variety of preschools and education options available in the Folsom and El Dorado Hills area. Already Enrolled in a Preschool? Sierra Moms has invited children's activity businesses to join the Faire so bring the kids for family fun! Enjoy crafts and activities, refreshments, music & entertainment, and ID card & fingerprint registration. This is the perfect opportunity to learn more about local resources.

Sierra Moms is a member-led organization for mothers serving the greater Folsom and El Dorado Hills areas. Through nurturing environments, we help women connect with one another to find support in their role as a mother. We also serve our community through volunteer efforts and fundraising for local charities. For more information on Sierra Moms visit www.sierramoms.org. A friend is someone who thinks you're a good egg even though you're slightly cracked.

Sierra Moms is hosting their annual Preschool & Children's Activities Faire on September 30th from 4 - 7:30 p.m. at the Folsom Community Center (52 Natoma Street). This super fun event will be jam packed with representatives from local area (Folsom / El Dorado Hills) preschools ready to inform visitors about their programs. It's one stop shopping for all your tot to big kid scholastic needs. Admission is Free!

The Faire is an amazing opportunity to familiarize yourself with the variety of preschools and education options available in the Folsom and El Dorado Hills area. Already Enrolled in a Preschool? Sierra Moms has invited children's activity businesses to join the Faire so bring the kids for family fun! Enjoy crafts and activities, refreshments, music & entertainment, and ID card & fingerprint registration. This is the perfect opportunity to learn more about local resources.

Sierra Moms is a member-led organization for mothers serving the greater Folsom and El Dorado Hills areas. Through nurturing environments, we help women connect with one another to find support in their role as a mother. We also serve our community through volunteer efforts and fundraising for local charities. For more information on Sierra Moms visit www.sierramoms.org. A friend is someone who thinks you're a good egg even though you're slightly cracked.

El Dorado Hills: The home buyer's upper hand continued in August in EDH. For 2008, the average sales price for El Dorado Hills had been $594k with 21% of the sales being bank owned homes. Although the average home price dropped only 1% from the 2008 average, 28% of the sales were bank owned and inventory remained at very high levels. In all, 50 homes sold, 14 were bank owned and 401 homes (a 9 month supply) remain for sale. Inside scoop: If you aspire to live in Serrano, due to all of the foreclosures, there are excellent, rock-bottoms deals available under $135 per square foot.

Aaron's take on the markets: The local markets continue to be influenced by the sale of bank owned homes. Banks continue to liquidate their inventories, putting downward pressure on home prices. The good news is, it is an excellent time to purchase a home. Prices are relatively affordable and interest rates remain low. Even if home prices slide a little more in the coming year, many economists are predicting an increase in interest rates next year that could make mortgage payments rise. If you have to sell your home in the next year, I would suggest moving quickly and pricing it at, or slightly below, the market. If you don't have to sell, then now is not the time to test the waters. If you are looking to upsize, get in, get it sold and then get a great deal on your dream home! Real estate always moves in cycles, and so far, this cycle has not bottomed. As financing becomes easier and repo's subside, prices will stabilize and the recovery will begin.

Personal note: In August, I helped a "Sierra Mom"quickly sell her home in Broadstone and then get a great deal on an amazing, high-end custom home in El Dorado Hills. If you want to know how to take advantage of this soft market, call me.

Have a great September! Aaron Cullen, Brokers Inc. Residential Real Estate

Folsom: Through July, the average sales price for the year in Folsom had been $438k with 25% of the sales being bank repo's. It came as no surprise that as the percentage of bank owned sales dropped to 12% in August, Folsom had a great month. Bucking the regional trend, August 2008 was Folsom's strongest month of the year, with an average sales price of $471k, an increase of 7.50% over the 2008 average. In all 67 homes sold, 8 were bank owned and 280 homes (a 5 month supply) remain for sale. Folsom continues to be a desirable place to live with a relatively stable real estate market that is doing well. Bank repo's continue to hit the market and at times are priced way below the market for quick sale.

Aaron's take on the markets: The local markets continue to be influenced by the sale of bank owned homes. Banks continue to liquidate their inventories, putting downward pressure on home prices. The good news is, it is an excellent time to purchase a home. Prices are relatively affordable and interest rates remain low. Even if home prices slide a little more in the coming year, many economists are predicting an increase in interest rates next year that could make mortgage payments rise. If you have to sell your home in the next year, I would suggest moving quickly and pricing it at, or slightly below, the market. If you don't have to sell, then now is not the time to test the waters. If you are looking to upsize, get in, get it sold and then get a great deal on your dream home! Real estate always moves in cycles, and so far, this cycle has not bottomed. As financing becomes easier and repo's subside, prices will stabilize and the recovery will begin.

Personal note: In August, I helped a "Sierra Mom" quickly sell her home in Broadstone and then get a great deal on an amazing, high-end custom home in El Dorado Hills. If you want to know how to take advantage of this soft market, call me.

Have a great September! Aaron Cullen, Brokers Inc. Residential Real Estate

After seeing the National Association of Realtors report that the Sacramento Region was the #1 declining market in the 2nd quarter of 2008 (36% decline in year-over-year median home price), I was thrilled to read a recent article, illustrating that we are moving toward market stabilization. Defaults peaked in April 2008 and have leveled off since.

There is no doubt that the lower end of the market is in high-demand with many, many homes receiving multiple offers and selling above asking price. In July, 70% of the home sales in Sacramento County were bank owned homes. In August, 65% of the homes sold were bank repo real estate. As this liquidation continues, banks are unloading their bad loans and raising capital. As the markets stabilize in the next year, and the credit spreads shrink, and the banks continue to re-work all the ticking time-bomb loans out there, the markets will turn and the cycle will turn once again; albeit at a much slower pace this time.

To those that are watching the market statistics and watching the efforts being made to work through the housing bust and credit crisis, there is no doubt that the markets are beginning to turn before our eyes. If you are thinking about buying a home, be smart in your choice of financing and home selection and then make your home ownership dreams come true. There is a window of opportunity for great deals right now that may begin to close in the coming year.