About Clallam County, WA

.... a brief YouTube video, courtesy of http://warealtor.org/

Unless you've been vacationing in other parts of the world for the last year, you've probably heard about the $8,000 First-time Homebuyers Tax Credit.

Still want a chance to use that Tax Credit? You MUST be fast. How fast? The deadline to have everything completed is November 30. So what are you waiting for? You've got things to do. Here's a short list:

1. Watch the YouTube video.

2. Head on over to wahomeowners.com for some more excellent information.

3. Locate a local Realtor to guide you through the process (hint: ActiveRain is a good place to look for a local Realtor.)

4. Ask your Realtor for the name of a trusted local lender--(hint: ActiveRain is also a good place to look for a local lender.)

5. Gather up your tax returns from 2008, and pay stubs for 2009. If you have your Tax Returns prepared by a certified public accountant, call them right away to let them know your plans.

6. Somewhere in all this commotion, you and your Realtor will be seriously house-hunting. Remember, you must find the home, submit your offer to purchase, do your due diligence on the house you've chosen, then proceed to closing. ALL by November 30.

Don't live in Washington? Check with the Realtor association in your state for more information. Just do it!

There are few events in life more demanding than preparing for a move. The happy anticipation of living in your new home can be unceremoniously squelched when you begin to consider the effort of packing of your grandmother’s china or your rare record collection. But take heart: the initial anxiety can be significantly relieved when you follow a few simple measures.
First of all plan ahead - way ahead. Careful planning can make the difference between a chaotic, hysterical moving day and an organized, easeful transition when the moving van arrives. Check and re-confirm the scheduled settlement date. Make a list of all records that need to be transferred and utilities companies that must be notified. Take a long hard look at your possessions and then ruthlessly weed out everything you haven’t used in over a year. Next, have that obligatory garage sale which offers the double bonus of relieving you of more objects to pack and giving you cash to cover last-minute minor expenses. Remember that you’re paying someone to carry away everything you choose to take with you, and leave behind whatever will end up sitting in your new basement. Finally, make it fun. A moving party gives everyone an excuse to spend time with you while helping you prepare.

-Jean

Things are changing. If you're a seller, things are starting to look up. But if you're a buyer, the party is winding down.

We have had more homes in pending status every month for the past four months than we did in the same time period last year. Inventory is down as well.

Percentage wise, last month the market was 25% below 2008 levels. As of the end of June, the market was down eighteen percent. Last month, the sales level over the past six months was down by seventeen percent. Now it's off by just fifteen percent from the year before.

Current inventory for the Port Angeles market is 327 homes, down fourteen percent from last year's 378. The lowest price segment is also the largest with 89 homes priced under $200,000. That's up 27% from last year's levels.

Homes priced from $200,000 - $249,999 number 84, up 20% from last year. Almost every other segment is down.

Looking for a home priced from $250,000 - $299,999? There are 43% fewer this year with just 38 to choose from. Last year there were 55 homes priced from $300,000 - $349,999. Now we have 27 to choose from.

Selection in the $350,000 - $399,999 segment is also off by more than 50% with only 20 currently available. And homes valued from $400,000 - $499,999 are off by 35%. There are 25 now.

There's one more home in the $500,000

to $599,999 bracket. There's an even dozen now on the market. Conversely, there's one fewer home in the top segment of homes priced at $600,000 and above, but still 32 to choose from.

It's still taking longer to sell a home this year, but just nine percent longer -- with an average of 136 days. Right now, even though inventory is lower, the sales rate gives us almost the same absorption rate as last year at this time; 15.3 months.

Sales of homes under $200,000 have held almost even from last year; with 62 sold so far. Last year we'd sold 61 by this time.

Sales of homes from $200,000 - $249,999 are off by half with just 21 sold so far. The next section, $250,000 - $299,999, have seen five more sales this year with 27 purchased by the end of June. We only sold seven homes priced between $300,000 - $349,999 by this time in 2008. So far this year; three.

We've had one-third fewer buyers in the $350,000 - $399,999 bracket with just eight sold now. $400,000 - $499,999 homes have had three sales. Last year there were six.

There's been one more home sold in the $500,000 - $599,999 range. There's been three so far this year. And if you were looking to sell a home priced above $600,000. . . two have sold by the halfway mark of the year. Down 50% from 2008.

As inventories shrink, demand will start to raise prices. That's the basic law of supply and demand. It won't happen quickly, but signs are there that the process is beginning.

In the first week of July eleven homes sold and thirteen went under contract. Thirty-six were withdrawn, expired or taken temporarily off the market.

Last year the average home sold for 95% of the asking price. At this point the average is 94%.

Why are lenders taking so long to underwrite and fund loans, or even return phone calls? In what used to take two weeks to 30 days tops, depending on appraisal, is now taking 30-60 even 90 days in some cases.

Let's start by adding a declining market, a recession, if you will. Next add corporate layoffs and mortgage industry downsizing to the mix. Stir in a heavy dose of credit guideline changes, almost on a daily bases. Fold in Federal lending rate cuts, dropping mortgage interest rates, and exponentially increasing refinancing (refi boom). Lastly, sprinkle Credit crunch on top with new regulations such as HVCC/HERA and what do you get?
A recipe for the perfect storm of delayed underwriting, increased fees and costs, and frustrated home buyers.

My experience has been pleasant with those refinancing but the home buyers, especially the first timers, have a hard time grasping what is taking so long. The anticipation of the new home seems to get the better of them.

Now, I do have avenues to close the loan quicker but those lenders don't always have all the programs available and their rates tend to be a tad higher.

The best solution I have found is to explain the situation in a way that doesn't add too much to cloud their mind and ensure them they are in good hands. It may take an extra few weeks to close the loan but we have great rates, and a lender that I know isn't going to throw me any wild curve balls. Ultimately the loan will close and the end result will be the same.

As, I finished writing this blog it does seem that most turn times have come back down to reality. Even so, we are just a few interest rate swings away from them going back up again.

Cheers,

Sales activity is still down from this point last year, but apparently gaining ground. Last month sales were off 41% year-to-date from 2008 levels and sales in the past six months were off by 27%.

At the end of April the market was down 32% from ‘08 and the "sold in the last six months" level was down by 20 percent. Sixty four homes have sold so far this year. Last year it was 93 by this time. Number of sales in the last six months has reached 117 versus 147 in ‘08.

Inventory has grown from 310 in the last week of March to 313 at the end of April. Compared to last year, there are 5% fewer homes to choose from; although the under $200,000 segment is almost identical in number with 64 now available.

There are 74 homes on the market between $200,000 and $249,999. Last year we had 55 to choose from. The $250,000 - $299,999 bracket has 58 homes. Last year there were sixty-four.

The $300,000 - $349,999 priced homes are almost half as many as in 2008 with just 25 currently on the market.

There are 29% fewer from $350,000 - $399,999 with just 22 available; 17% fewer between $400,000 and $499,999, 25 to choose from; and 19% fewer in the $500,000 - $599,999 range, with only 13 now on the market.

There are a third more homes, 32 versus 24 in ‘08, in the $600,000+ group.

The average house is staying on the market almost five weeks longer than it did last year. The average days on market is now 146 days. Last year the average was one-hundred-twelve.

The under $200,000 segment is pretty much a balanced market with 7.2 months of inventory.

In the last week of April we had six go under contract with 132 average days on market. Four houses closed at an average of 99% of asking price.

Homes priced from $200,000 - $249,999 are moving a bit faster with 143 average days on the market; however, there's a 23.4 month supply.

If you're selling in the $250,000 - $299,999 bracket, be prepared to wait an average of 130 days for a house to move. And there's a 14.5 month supply.

The $300,000 - $349,999 and $500,000 - $599,999 brackets have similar number months of supply, 25 and 26, respectively. Average days: 112 and 131.

The longest wait time on the market is currently the $350,000 - $399,999 home with 204 days. There is almost a nineteen month supply.

The $600,000+ segment has almost eight-years-one-month of inventory.

Statistics are an okay indicator, but sometimes a quick scan can be far more revealing. For example: There's an average list-versus-sold price of 94%, year-to-date, for homes in the Port Angeles market.

In the lowest priced segment, the homes are coming in at 96% of list price. The next two, spanning $200,000 - $299,999, are at 95% each.

There was one house in the $300,000 - $349,999 segment that sold for 88% of asking price; the only sale. Almost the same can be said for the $400,000 - $499,999 block; one sold, 81% of asking.

Houses in the $350,000 - $399,999 range have been averaging 92% of list.

And our final selling segment of homes; the $500,000 - $599,999 homes, has a 91% list to sold price ratio.

Lest you think I miscounted, the $600,000 has no list-to-sold ratio available. None have sold in 2009.