Michael Barrow Realtor® San Diego CA Real Estate

In the second volume of San Diego Foreclosure Friday I'll be showing you a couple of luxury homes with some spectacular views! The first listing is a recent sale in the La Costa neighborhood of Carlsbad with gorgeous mountain and ocean views, and the second listing is a new foreclosure to the market in Point Loma with views all the way to downtown.

SOLD $880,000 (3/6/2009)

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $1,255,000
(7/11/2006)

This 4 bedroom, 3 bath, 3800 square foot estate home sits high on the hill on over an acre of land overlooking Carlsbad and the ocean and mountains beyond, in the prestigious La Costa Estates. Some of the features of this home include a gated private drive lined with palm trees, 2 fireplaces, pecan wood flooring, and a beautiful kitchen with granite counters and stainless steel appliances.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE $1,124,900

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $1,645,000
(1/16/2007)

Enjoy completely unobstructed views all the way to downtown San Diego from this 4 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath, 2119 square-foot Point Loma home. This outstanding residence was completely remodeled inside and out with floor to ceiling wood windows, hardwood floors, an amazing master suite with a private deck, complete with outdoor fireplace, and posh spa master bathroom.

If you would like more info on either one of these listings, other foreclosure properties throughout the San Diego area, or general information about buying foreclosure properties, please check out my website page on buying San Diego foreclosures. You can easily contact me from the form on the bottom of that page, or via email at Michael@NeelyBarrow.com.

Be sure to check back again next week for another San Diego Foreclosure Friday!

In 2008 about 80% of the buyers that I worked with ended up purchasing a foreclosure property. That trend continues with the buyers that I am currently working with in 2009. So I tend to get a lot of questions about the San Diego foreclosure market. People want to know just how good of a deal these foreclosure properties really are.

So starting today, and every Friday until the foreclosure market slows down and dissipates (and believe me, I think we still have a while before that happens), I will be posting two of the best foreclosure properties in San Diego for that week.

The first property that I will post will be a foreclosure that sold that week so that you can check out what it sold for, and the next will be one that is currently available so that you'll be aware of some of the best deals the San Diego foreclosure market has to offer.

So, without further adieu...

SOLD $458,495 (3/4/2009)

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $735,000 (2/24/2005)

This classic Spanish home, in a great area of North Park, is 1910 square feet, and has 4 bedrooms and 2 baths. It has a great open floor plan with with sculpted archways, hardwood floors, and an open beamed ceiling. French doors lead out to a tiled patio and a beautiful backyard.

CURRENTLY AVAILABLE $689,000

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $1,050,000 (4/4/2007)

This 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 1935 square foot modern home sits high above the street in the heart of Kensington, one of San Diego's most sought after communities. This spacious home offers wood floors, an upstairs master bedroom with a fireplace, and a private backyard with a gazebo and spa.

If you would like more info on either one of these listings, other foreclosure properties throughout the San Diego area, or general information about buying foreclosure properties, please check out my website page on buying San Diego foreclosures. You can easily contact me from the form on the bottom of that page, or via email at Michael@NeelyBarrow.com.

Be sure to check back again next week for another San Diego Foreclosure Friday!

I haven't written in a few weeks, so I'm a bit behind in my reporting, but there have been a few big pieces of news that I want to make sure I get everybody caught up on in the next few days.

I'll start with a biggie...Drum roll please...Wait for it...First-time home buyers are you listening? It's an $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers!!! And this time around it is a true tax credit, meaning you don't have to pay it back. This is huge!

So here's how it works. If you are a first-time buyer, meaning you haven't owned a home in the last 3 years, and you buy a primary residence (which means you will live in the property) between January 1st, 2009 and December 1st, 2009 you will be eligible for an $8,000 credit on your taxes.

The big thing with this tax credit is that it is fully refundable. This means that first-time home buyers who owe less than $8,000 in taxes for the year are still eligible for the full $8,000 credit when they file their tax returns, and the IRS will write them a check for the difference between $8,000 and their actual tax bill. Not only that, but if you're getting killed on your 2008 tax returns because you didn't own a home you can apply this credit to your 2008 taxes, as long as you purchase the home before you file on April 15Th.

There are a couple of restrictions on the credit. First, you must live in the home for at least 3 years, so no house flippers. And there are income limitations to claim the full credit ($75,000 for single tax-filers and $150,000 for married couples).

So, if you are a first-time home buyer who has been sitting on the fence, now is the time to get off and start shopping. Check out my website to search the San Diego MLS.

One more quick update to my last post "Another bail-out is taking shape...but, what's in it for me?" The conforming loan limits from last year were re-instated. This is more big news for San Diego as the limits moved from their reduced limit of $625,000, back up to $729,750! Unfortunatly these limits are not permanent, and will expire on December 31st, 2009.

In my next post I will be attempting to dissect the Obama administration's Foreclosure Prevention Plan (that one's a bit more complicated and all the details have still yet to come out), so check back soon.

Yesterday the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 by a 244 to 188 vote. Zero Republicans voted yes and 11 Democrats voted no. It still needs to get through the Senate, and, if passed, will likely be tweaked along the way. But as it stands right now there are a couple of positive pieces that stand out to me as a San Diego Realtor.

The first is the bill's measure extending all 2008 Metropolitan Statistical Areas’ (MSAs’) Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and FHA loan limits through the end of this year.

Huh? English please.

Loan limits have traditionally been insured by the government up to $417,000 (referred to as "conforming"). Because they are government insured they are seen as less risky to banks and, therefore, carry lower rates than higher balanced loans. In higher cost areas, like San Diego, loan balances tend to be higher than in areas like, say, Ohio where most home loans are under $417,000. So last year the government created a new temporary limit in higher cost areas based on the median priced home in that particular area with a maximum limit of $729,750.

On December 31, 2008 that limit expired and was reduced to $625,500. The new stimulus bill seeks to reinstate those 2008 limits through the end of 2009. This helps home owners in San Diego, and other high cost areas, with refinancing. It also allows more homes to be sold in higher cost markets, which benefits both buyers and sellers alike. If this sounds like a pretty logical idea to you (higher cost areas = higher insured loan limits) then I'm sure your next question is "Shouldn't this be a permanent increase?" Well, logical people like you and me say "Yes it should!"

The second measure in the bill that stood out to me was eliminating the repayment requirement on the first-time home buyer tax credit for qualified buyers who purchase a home between Dec. 31, 2008, and July 1 2009. If you're asking, "Huh? What $7500 first-time home buyer tax credit?" you are not alone. I think a lot of people are unaware of this recent (and again, temporary) tax credit. So if you are one of these people you can read more about it here.

The big deterrent to getting more first-time buyers into the market with this tax credit is the fact that it has to be re-paid. So eliminating the repayment feature would be one really good step. Another would be to extend it all the way through the end of 2009 (hint, hint if anyone from the government is reading this blog).

Although I think both of these provisions are a step in the right direction, the major thing that I think needs all of our government's immediate attention is the second half of the original $700 billion stimulus bill...That, so far, has been about as stimulating as a weak cup of decaf. I thought the point of injecting $350 billion into the banks was to get them to lend, no? Seeing as how no one (not the banks or the treasury department) can really account for what was actually done with the first $350 billion, I would hope there would be a few more restrictions and requirements put on the second $350 billion.

As National Association of REALTORS® President Charles McMillan sums this all up, "We think this bill is a great first step in helping our economy on the road to recovery. It is also important that Congress and the new administration refocus the use of Troubled Asset Relief Program dollars to add liquidity to the mortgage market and make mortgage loans and other loans more available to America’s working families.”

To which I say, "Amen!" He must be reading my blog!

Okay, so which news do you want first...The good or the bad?

Let's start with the bad.

The dreaded S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks prices in 20 cities throughout the U.S., released it's November report, and once again the numbers didn't look good. I'll spare you the boredom of reading all the numbers, but will tell you that San Diego experienced another 2.3% drop in prices from October, and a 25.8% drop year-over-year (meaning November 2007 to November 2008). This isn't really "breaking news," however, as this is now the 28Th consecutive month that this report has registered declines.

"Um, hello? I thought you said there was good news?"

Well, there is good news for buyers. The major reason that these numbers look so bad is because an increasing number of these sales over the last year have been foreclosures and short-sales. These properties tend to sell at "bargain basement" prices as banks look to quickly unload their inventory. Add in historically low mortgage rates to the mix and you have a perfect storm for buyers.

"There's a pretty active housing market, it's simply at a lower-priced inventory," says Michael Feder, chief executive of the New York based derivatives firm, Radar Logic.

According to their data, and a recent story in Forbes, real estate transactions in San Diego are up 90% in the last few months as buyers compete for the available bargains.

We are definitely seeing a lot of first-time buyers and investors jumping back in to the San Diego real estate market. In fact, the majority of our transactions in 2008 were with buyers, and almost 90% of those buyers bought a property that was in foreclosure! These dramatic price drops are bringing affordability back down to earth and savvy buyers back into the market.