Right now, there are dozens of 4bd properties in Simi Valley that are eligible for up to $200,000 in down payment assistance. Many of these properties are not REO's or short sales but actual equity sales with really motivated sellers like this property.
This wonderful 4bd/3ba HOLLOW HILLS home offers nearly 2,100 sq. ft. of living space on a nearly 8,000 sq. ft. lot. This wonderful home features updated, custom maple kitchen cabinets with granite counter tops.
There’s also two large master suites with remodeled bathrooms. New dual pane windows throughout.
This home is not like the run-down, dilapidated, dumpy short sales or REO's that you have been seeing. This home is located in a quiet residential neighborhood and is walking distance from both Rancho Simi Community Park, Sycamore Park and the Arroyo bike trails.
The best thing about this home is that it qualifies for the City of Simi Valley First-Time Home Buyer Assistance Program. Right now, homeownership affordability here in Simi Valley as well as Ventura county is the best it has been in years, maybe even decades.
For less than $1,700 a month (PITI), you could own this wonderful home. In this neighborhood, the rents for a home like this would run $2,300-$2,500 a month.
This program is specifically geared for the low-medium income first-time homebuyers who wish to purchase their first home in Simi Valley. I like this program because the Simi Valley city administrators for this program are not only the easiest ones to reach but they are also some of the friendliest ones to talk to and deal with.
The program is available to those who have not owned a home in the last three years. Single parents who owned a home while married and displaced homemakers may qualify even if they owned a home in the previous three years.
Program eligibility will be based on total household income, a housing cost ratio not to exceed 35%, and a debt-to-income ratio not to exceed 45%.
The maximum home price and City subsidy limits appear below:
| # Bedrooms | Maximum Market Purchase Price | Per Bedroom Subsidy Limits | Maximum Affordable Sales Price |
| 1 | $206,700 | $50,000 | $156,700 |
| 2 | $280,900 | $100,000 | $180,900 |
| 3 | $349,300 | $150,000 | $199,300 |
| 4 | $418,600 | $200,000 | $218,600 |
For more info on how you can qualify for down payment assistance to purchase this home, contact me, Donne Knudsen of CalState Realty Services at 805.2069123 or donne4loans@earthlink.net.
Today's real estate market can be really scary, which is why it's important to get as much information as possible before starting your search. The pre-approval process is not a simple process and it's because it can get really complicated and convoluted, that borrowers today need affordable loan options that are best suited for their own needs.
In my continuing effort to educate and inform consumers and prospective buyers here in Los Angeles & Ventura counties about our local market, I want to continue with the next series in my local reports: the San Fernando Valley.
The San Fernando Valley is a rather large area that encompasses numerous cities so in an effort to break it down to a more manageable area, I am going to divide it into smaller sections started with the: West San Fernando Valley.
The West Valley is an area that encompasses several cities (Calabasas, Canoga Park, Chatsworth, Hidden Hills, West Hills, Winnetka & Woodland Hills). It's located in the north western part of Los Angeles county, just south of the Santa Clarita Valley and just east of the Ventura county line.
Using the same price range $417k< as I did in previous local reports, when working with prospective buyers in the West Valley, the homes in this price range are mostly modest three and four bedroom homes (with a small percentage of both smaller and larger homes) averaging more than 1,500 sq. ft. in size.
In reviewing the sales for the past 90 days because this is the timeframe that lenders and their appraisers often look at when determining property values, the average sales price for this price range is 329k. Last year, the average sales price for this area and price range was 346k and in July of this year, it was $335k.
With an approx. 5% decrease in prices since last year and less than a 2% decrease from just a few months ago, it would appear that the decline of the West Valley has slowed. While this is still considered a declining market, it’s definitely not massive drops that the media has been spewing about.
The absorption rate is the number of months it would take to sell the properties that are currently listed on the market. The current rate of absorption for this area is 1.92, which means based on the average amount of sales per month; there is less than two months of inventory on the market. The absorption rate for this area has been relatively the same for the past year now.
A stable market would be an inventory of about six months or an absorption rate of six. However, the competition between buyers for many of the eligible properties in this area remains fierce and this scenario generates bidding wars and actually drives prices up, which is not a sign of a buyer’s market.
For much of the past 12mon, the absorption rate has remained low, with a slight decrease during the summer months which is rather typical. This is very popular area in the San Fernando Valley and one where the demand is far higher than the supply.
Here in the West Valley, properties are selling pretty close to list price and the avg. sales price vs. list price is 97%, which has remained unchanged all year. While the average SP% vs. LP% for traditional financed properties (99%) is higher than the SP% vs. LP% for cash sales (94%); even the cash sales are not what one would call "lowball" sales. The lowest cash sale was 70% of the list price and was priced accordingly to its condition (it was a run-down REO in a nice neighborhood).
Approx. 42% of the sales were at list price or higher, here in the West Valley, which has remained pretty much the same all year. For buyers looking to purchase a nice looking property in the low-end of the market here, chances of you having to make a full price or higher are highly likely, unless, of course, you have a boatload of cash.
The practice of many listing agents intentionally list property slightly below market value simply for the purpose of generating bidding wars in order to get higher than list offers is very prominent here in the West Valley. Based on this practice the average SP% vs. LP% for those offers at list or higher is 101%. As you can see, the West Valley is definitely not a lowball buyers’ market.
When it comes to buying a property in the West Valley, cash is not really king around here anymore. Based on recent sales for the past 90 days, traditional financed sales are the majority types of sales and cash sales have actually been decreasing for the past six months. This may be attributed to an increase in investor flipping sales. Another disturbing stat is the lack of any CalVet/VA sales; a drop of 3% since July.
Overall, sales for the West Valley have increased more than 20% from last year. Unfortunately though, like so much of Los Angeles & Ventura counties, the market here in the West Valley is still saturated in short sales and REO's even though they have been slowly declining all year. However, equity sales are up 5% from last year and much of this can be attributed to investor flips.
Lastly, so far this year, the avg. DOM in the West Valley has increased to 114 days from 97 last year. Much of this can be attributed to longer escrow times for short sales and some really long probate sales.
In summary, while the West Valley is still a distressed market due to the number of short sales and REO's in the market, we are most certainly not a lowball buyers’ market. Buyers who want to purchase a nice looking, halfway decent property here are not only going to have to compete for it with other buyers but they're also going to have to probably pay close to list price or more for it.
Today's real estate market can be really scary, which is why it's important to get as much information as possible before starting your search. The pre-approval process is not a simple process and it's because it can get really complicated and convoluted, that borrowers today need affordable loan options that are best suited for their own needs.
For more info on affordable home loan options, contact me, Donne Knudsen from C2 Financial Corp. at 805.2069123 or donne4loans@earthlink.net.
Please check out other Local Reports for Los Angeles & Ventura counties
LOCAL MARKET REPORT: Simi Valley (Ventura County)
LOCAL MARKET REPORT: Santa Clarita Valley (Los Angeles County)
LOCAL MARKET REPORT: Conejo Valley
While we are truly blessed to be spending the holidays with family and friends, there are so many of God’s creatures that won’t be so blessed. Thousands of abandoned and abused animals will be spending the holiday in a shelter, still waiting for a new family to adopt them and take them home.
There are so many local shelters and rescues that need your help in any way you can. While it would be great if you could adopt or foster a rescued dog or cat, if that’s not an option then your kind and generous donation of food or supplies would be greatly appreciated.
Below are just a few of the local shelters and rescues here in Los Angeles & Ventura counties:
Human Society of Ventura County
Ventura County Animal Shelters
On that note, I now want to now share with you a very important message from the RSPCA about a real Christmas wish for so many precious creatures. Merry Christmas and be kind to each other as well as to the four-legged fur babies.
One of my fave Christmas traditions that hubby and I love is visiting Christmas Tree Lane up in the city of Oxnard’s Historical District. Last night, hubby and I introduced some of our friends to this treasured holiday event.
If you've never seen this area, it is all about some of the city’s oldest homes, dating back to 1911. Most of the homeowners here have taken great pride in the charm of this historic neighborhood and surrounding community and that pride is reflected in the ten blocks of carefully restored homes ranging from Craftsman, Spanish Colonials and Period Revival bungalows.
The 144 homes in this district were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999 because it has one of the highest ratios of contributing structures: meaning the homes have not been greatly modified and because the neighborhood has maintained its character. Furthermore, most of the homes have remained within the same family for generations.
This year marks the 19th anniversary of Oxnards Christmas Tree Lane event in the historic homes district on F Street and G Street between 5th Street and Palm Dr. All decorations and lighting are provided by individual homeowners and no City support is provided other than increased traffic control and refuse barrels to lessen the impact on the residents.
Oxnard's Christmas Tree Lane is a tradition that hubby and I have been doing for many, many years and it’s a must-see for your holiday entertainment. Visitors can walk on the sidewalks or drive their cars through the neighborhoods that comprise this historic region.
If you haven't been yet, there is still time to enjoy this wonderful event that will continue every night until December 26th. Here are just a few shots of some of the incredible displays from our visit last night.
CalState Realty Services has joined with C2 Financial Corp to create a full-service agency to assist buyers and sellers with both their real estate needs as well as their mortgage needs.
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