Bob Willis

This Market Report is for Whittier, California.

This Market Report on Whittier Homes for Sale will focus on Single Family Residences in Whittier, California.

As of today, there are 260 Single Family Residences for sale in the Whittier area.

98 homes were sold during the month of September.

The average home sale price was $358,858, or an average cost per square foot of $250.81.

289 homes are currently in escrow, which is significant because more homes are in escrow right now than are for sale.

It would take 2.7 months, at the current rate of sales, for all the current Whittier homes on the market to sell. A Sellers' Market is when there is less than 5 months of supply. Whittier is currently in a very strong Sellers' Market.

So, this Sellers' Market actually applies to all homes for sale in Whittier, CA that are priced under $500,000. Whittier homes for sale that are priced above $500,000 are taking longer to sell. The higher the price, the more advantageous it is for the buyer being able to have more leverage and less competition from other buyers.

© Robert E. Willis

Many potential home buyers are looking for a great deal. That is why many of them are thinking about buying a bank repo or a short sale property. Many buyers may be surprised that the best deals out there may actually be owner occupied homes in great condition that are priced a little bit higher than bank repos, and a lot higher than many short sales.

Number One: Since you can make a decision immediately, buyers don’t have to wait for days, like they do for a bank owned property, or for weeks or months, like they may have to do with a short sale.

Number Two: Most sellers are willing to counter a fairly good offer. If a bank repo has 6, 12 or 24 offers, they don’t even bother to counter most offers.

Number Three: Your home is probably in better condition than a bank repo.

Number Four: You have spruced up the house, and it looks like a very welcome home.

Number Five: You have staged your home to make potential buyers love it.

Number Six: Many bank owned properties will require too much money in repairs just to get them up to neighborhood average condition. I have seen many bank owned properties that will require $30,000 or more in repairs or upgrades next door to upgraded homes that won’t require any work that are priced within $10,000 of each other.

Number Seven: Often, banks will not do any repairs or pay for any termite treatment.

Number Eight: Your house still has all the appliances; and they actually work.

Number Nine: Your house still has toilets.

Number Ten: Your house is clean, furnished and looks lived in. It’s a home that someone wants to make their home.

You’ve heard the expression before, “Cash is King.” Today, it applies especially well to buying a bank owned property, also known as an REO (Real Estate Owned by the bank).

Unlike a regular sale of a home, there is no emotion is involved on the bank’s side when a bank sells a property. They are looking primarily at the bottom line. They are selling what some people may consider an asset, but what they consider to be a liability. They want to get the property off their books; but they want to get the most money they can for it.

The strongest offers will:

• Be all cash
• Not request any closing costs
• Not ask for any repairs
• Not ask for a home warranty policy
• Not request any termite treatment

So, what do you get when you don’t ask for anything special? You get a house at a rock bottom price that is not in the best condition. Be prepared to have some additional cash on hand for making repairs.

Who is coming to the table with cash? Mostly investors, at this time. There are actually several investors in the Whittier area who are buying houses for cash, fixing them up and selling them weeks later for a profit. And, after they are fixed up, they are selling very quickly in this market.

Now, it is very difficult for a first time buyer, with a small down payment, to buy a home that is priced under $400,000. Competition is fierce. So, your offer needs to be as strong as you can make it.

How else can you increase the odds of getting that bank owned home?

• Offer a larger down payment. The larger the down payment, the greater chance of getting an offer accepted.
• Increase your Good Faith Deposit to 3% of the purchase price. Sellers will look at you as a more serious buyer.

If you have to finance the purchase with a loan (mortgage) what are the best loans for purchasing a bank owned home?

• Top of the list is to get a conventional loan, with a high down payment. If you can do a 50% down payment, then so much the better.
• Next, a conventional loan with the traditional 20% down payment.
• Then, a conventional loan with 10% down.
• Next, government sponsored loans, such as a VA or CalSTRS loan. Although a CalSTRS loan is conventional, most banks are not familiar with it, and would consider it to be an exotic way to fund the purchase.
• Finally, you can try to buy with an FHA loan, which is perhaps the most difficult offer to get accepted on a bank owned property. Banks don’t want to have to do any repairs that would be required for an FHA loan. They want to sell the property “AS IS”.

The higher you are on this list, the better your chances are for getting your offer accepted.

So you all are waiting for the new movie about Michael Jackson’s never-to-be final concert: This is It.

You may be waiting in line to get your tickets for the October 27 premiere; but there is a much more important date on the horizon. It is November 30, which is the last day you have to be eligible for the First Time Home Buyer $8,000 Tax Credit.

No, at the end of September, you have just 2 months to wrap up your deal. You have about 30 days to find a home and 30 days to close escrow. It can still happen for you, if everything goes well, and there are no glitches to delay the transaction.

The fact is, you are running out of time. It’s going to be hard to Beat It. At this point, you may be better off accepting the notion that you won’t be able to get the $8,000 Tax Credit for First Time Home Buyers.

If you are just starting your search, you can expect to run into fierce competition for any properties on the market, especially in Whittier, and the rest of Southern California. That means you will be bidding against all the other First Time Home Buyers who want to cash in on the $8,000 Tax Credit before it expires.

If you want to buy a home now, don’t do it for the $8,000 Tax Credit. Do it because you want to own a home of your own. Now, that would be a real Thriller. The next time you take a look at the Man in the Mirror, you could be looking at a home owner. And that wouldn’t be bad, would it?

-Blog End-

By the way, the picture above is at the Gold Mine VW store on Pickering Boulevard in Whittier. They change the mannequin in the display from time to time, and, before Michael Jackson, they had Octomom in the display.

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About the author: The above Article about the $8,000 Tax Credit was provided by Bob Willis, a Whittier Realtor®. Bob can be reached via email at bob@willisrealtor.com or by phone at (562) 639-9400.

For Whittier real estate, see Whittier Welcomes You. Want to have MLS access to beat other buyers to your dream home? Sign up with no obligation at my ListingBook website.

I service the following towns in the greater Whittier area: La Habra, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Norwalk and Santa Fe Springs.

Homes for sale in Whittier, California are at the lowest levels in several years.

Today, September 23, 2009, there are a total of 283 properties for sale in the City of Whittier.

A year and a half ago, on May 25, 2008, there were 888 properties for sale in Whittier. The tables have significantly turned here in Southern California, making it a much better time to sell a home right now, rather than try to buy one.

A year ago, buyers could really pick and choose what properties they wanted to buy. Now, with the inventory of homes so low, it is really a dog-eat-dog world out there, with buyers competing aggressively for any decent house priced less than $400,000.

Buyers and sellers can each find something positive in this news.

Buyers can still buy a home at rock bottom prices. However, they have to be aggressive in making strong offers.

Sellers who need to sell, and who are realistic about today’s market prices, can sell their homes. There are lots of buyers out there, just waiting for your home to come on the market. But sellers need to understand that they won’t be able to sell the house for the amount they could have received for it two years ago, or even one year ago.

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About the author: The above Article about the City of Whittier home inventory was provided by Bob Willis, a Whittier Realtor®. Bob can be reached via email at bob@willisrealtor.com or by phone at (562) 639-9400.

For Whittier real estate, see Whittier Welcomes You. Want to have MLS access to beat other buyers to your dream home? Sign up with no obligation at my ListingBook website.

I service the following towns in the greater Whittier area: La Habra, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Norwalk and Santa Fe Springs.