Tag Archives: housing market

Four Things You Don’t Want To Put In Your Garage

You’ve got lots of stuff, and the garage is a super-convenient place to put it. But putting these items out there could be hazardous—for them, or for you

Source Realtor.com

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    2.5M Homes to Be Threatened by Tidal Flooding by the Year 2100

    Photo by Maureen Drennan 

    Rising sea levels and climate change are putting a significant number of homes at risk of tidal flooding, according to a report released Monday by the Union of Concerned Scientists. The report warns that up to 311,000 coastal homes and about 14,000 commercial properties will be at risk of chronic flooding within the next 30 years. By the end of the century, the UCS says that number will increase to 2.4 million homes—valued at about $912 billion—and 107,000 commercial properties—valued at $152 billion.

    The UCS’s study used three sea level rise scenarios to determine how many residential and commercial properties along the entire coastline of the lower 48 are at risk of becoming chronically inundated by high tides (which they defined as flooding an average of 26 times per year or more). The scenarios were in the absence of any major storm.

    The state with the most homes at risk by the end of the century was Florida, with about 1 million homes—or more than 10 percent of the state’s current residential properties. New Jersey follows with 250,000 homes at risk, followed by New York with 143,000 homes at risk. These three states were also identified as thse that stand to lose the most in home property values by year 2100: Florida risks $351 billion, New Jersey may lose $108 billion, and New York nearly $100 billion, according to the analysis.

    “Not all affected communities will share the same experience,” says Erika Spanger-Siegfried, senior analyst in the Climate and Energy Program at the UCS and a report coauthor. “Some may see sharp adjustments to their housing market in the not-too-distant future; some could see a slow, steady decline in home values; and others could potentially invest in protective measures to keep impacts at bay for a few more decades. In any case, by knowing how much time they have before a significant number of properties will be regularly flooded, communities can start planning and implementing responses now, while they still have a range of options from which to choose.”

    Source: 

    U.S. Coastal Property at Risk From rising Seas,” Union of Concerned Scientists (June 18, 2018)

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    Three California housing issues to watch in 2018

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    Source: The Los Angeles Times

    Rising rents and home prices forced California’s housing crisis to the front of Gov. Jerry Brown’s and lawmakers’ agenda in 2017.

    Legislators passed the most comprehensive package of housing bills in recent memory designed to increase spending on low-income development and encourage more construction in general.

    But the bills, according to independent analyses, won’t do much to make housing cheaper in the state.Expect more focus on housing issues at the Capitol and on your statewide ballot in 2018.

    Here are three to watch.

    1. A rent control battle

    2. The future of Proposition 13

    3. How lawmakers will follow up on this year’s housing efforts.

    Read the full story

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    Nevada County Fair Competition Handbook Now Available

    Fair entry Mechanical Bear
    Fair entry Mechanical Bear

     

    Book includes all the information you need to enter exhibits in this year’s Fair

     

    The Nevada County Fair’s Competition Handbook, which includes all the information you need to enter exhibits in this year’s Fair, is now available. If you can make it, bake it, grow it or show it, there is a category for you – and it can be found in the Competition Handbook!

    Why not showcase a child’s artwork project from school, a cooking skill, or a special collection? Try baking cookies, entering a photo, creating a produce character, making the Ugliest Decorated Cake, writing a poem, entering the Pet Look-A-Like photo contest, or making a bookmark. This year, we have some fun new categories like button art, plastic utensil art, decorated cake pops, beach art, and a decorated reusable grocery bag.

    Fair Entry Seahorse
    Fair Entry Seahorse

    There are also special contests like the Seafaring Squash Mobile Races, Daily Special Food Contests, 4-H Still Exhibits, and an exhibit video contest. With hundreds of categories available for children and adults, the Competition Handbook has something for everyone.

    Copies of the free handbook are available at the Fairgrounds’ Office, Chamber of Commerce offices, post offices, county libraries, Raley’s, SPD, Ben Franklin, Foothill Mercantile, and other local businesses, as well as online at NevadaCountyFair.com.  

    It’s easy to enter! Look through the book, pick your favorite categories, and follow the simple steps for completing the entry forms. You can even enter online at NevadaCountyFair.com.   Most categories are free to enter, and you can enter online or at the Fair office. The deadline for submitting entry forms and online entries is July 21 at 4 pm.

    The 2017 Nevada County Fair is August 9 – 13, and the Fair them is “Sea You at the Fair!” For more information, visit NevadaCountyFair.com or call (530) 273-6217.

     

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    Housing Inventories Rising Faster Than Usual

     

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    Photo credit: http://amazingdata.com/worlds-largest-and-tallest-wooden-houses/

    The number of homes for sale rose 4.3 percent in June to 1.9 million—the highest level in the past year. These gains are also higher than usual for this time of year, according to newly-released housing data from realtor.com®.

    Following two years of declines, housing inventory is finally reversing course. More home owners are seeing rising prices and may be more apt to try to sell their homes.

    The number of homes for sale has risen the most in the past year in areas that had seen the largest declines, such as Sacramento, Calif. (up 11 percent), Atlanta (up 10.9 percent), Phoenix (up 6.2 percent), and Miami (up 2.2 percent). From May to June, inventories soared by the highest month-over-month amounts in Southern California, with inventories up 51.5 percent in Orange County, 45.7 percent in Los Angeles, and 18.1 percent in San Diego, according to realtor.com®.

    However, inventories of homes for sale remain far below last year’s level in markets such as Boston (down 35.1 percent), Denver (down 30.1 percent), Detroit (down 25.7 percent), Seattle (down 23.2 percent), and San Francisco (down 21.7 percent).

    Realtor.com® also reports that median asking prices climbed 0.5 percent in June from May, reaching $199,900. Median asking prices are up by 5 percent over last year.

    Source: “Housing Listings Multiply in June,” The Wall Street Journal (July 15, 2013)

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    Foreclosures Down 29% From Year Ago

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    Photo credit: http://www.freeimageslive.com/galleries/buildings/structures/pics/oldbridge.jpg

    Foreclosures are continuing a steady fall, as home prices rise and the housing market picks up nationwide.

    About 1 million homes were in some stage of foreclosure in May, down from 1.4 million in May 2012, a 29 percent decline, according to CoreLogic’s latest foreclosure report. As of May, the foreclosure inventory represented 2.6 percent of all homes with a mortgage — down from 3.5 percent a year prior.

    There were 52,000 foreclosures completed nationwide in May, down 27 percent year over year. However, the numbers are still elevated compared to what’s considered normal for the market. Prior to the decline in the housing market in 2007, completed foreclosures averaged 21,000 per month between 2000 and 2006, according to CoreLogic.

    Since September 2008 — the start of the financial crisis — about 4.4 million foreclosures have been completed, CoreLogic’s data shows.

    Meanwhile, shadow inventory is down 34 percent from reaching its 2010 peak. It was under 2 million units in April, representing a 5.3 month supply.

    “We continue to see a sharp drop in foreclosures around the country and, with it, a decrease in the size of the shadow inventory,” says Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic. “Affordability, despite the rise in home prices over the past year, and consumer confidence are big contributors to these positive trends. We are particularly encouraged by the broad-based nature of the housing market recovery so far in 2013.”

    The stock of seriously delinquent homes, which is the main driver of shadow inventory, is at the lowest level since December 2008, adds Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic.  “Over the last year, it has decreased in 42 states by double-digit figures, resulting in rapid declines in shadow inventory for the first quarter of 2013,” Fleming says.

    The following five states account for nearly half of all completed foreclosures nationally and had the highest number of completed foreclosures in the last 12 months ending in May:

    • Florida
    • California
    • Michigan
    • Texas
    • Georgia

    Source: CoreLogic

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    Home Bidding Wars Are Back!

    Photo credit: http://ellyndembowskirealtor.blogspot.com/
    Photo credit: http://ellyndembowskirealtor.blogspot.com/

    The bidding wars are back. Seemingly overnight, many of the nation’s major housing markets have gone from stagnant to sizzling, with for-sale listings drawing offers from a large number of house hunters.

    The competition has been most intense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California drew competing bids during the month. And at least two-third of listings in Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle and New York generated bidding wars.

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    If You Are A Home Buyer, You’ve Missed The Boat on Low Interest Rates

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    Mortgage rates and home prices are on the rise, and some home buyers who were waiting around for the housing market to reach bottom are realizing now they may have missed the boat.

    Mortgage rates are inching up, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaging 3.91 percent last week — up from 3.3 percent in early May, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac.

    “It’s unlikely that rates will ever be that low again,” says Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s chief economist.

    The Fed has been keeping interest rates at record lows by buying up to $85 billion a month in Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, which has helped bolster the housing market.

    “Up until recently, expectations were that the Fed would begin to taper purchases of mortgage-backed securities and Treasury bonds late in 2013, but that time frame appears to have moved to September, possibly sooner,” says Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH.com, a mortgage information company.

    As the economy continues to gain traction, interest rates are expected to continue to increase, Gumbinger says, since low rates often are associated with a distressed economy.

    But even if mortgage rates move up a percentage point or two, housing experts note that mortgage rates will still be low by historical standards.

    “The 30-year [mortgage rate] hit a 37-year low in 2003 at 5.23 percent,” Gumbinger says. “That was the previous low-watermark prior to this financial crisis, and it’s likely we will move closer to that mark as we grind forward.”

    Source: “Why You Missed the Boat On Record-Low Mortgage Rates,” CNNMoney (June 6, 2013)

    Please help out to keep this blog going
    Let me sell or help you buy your new home or land

    Please help out to keep this blog going
    Let me sell or help you buy your new home or land

    John J. O’Dell Realtor® GRI
    O’Dell Realty
    (530) 263-1091
    Email John

    DRE#00669941

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    National Median Home Prices Up 9.5% From Year Ago Levels

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    Photo credit: www.caffeinecruisers.com/

    By Lawrence Yun

    The national median home price, at $187,400, is up 9.5 percent from year-ago levels, and the market is on pace to see 4.82 million home sales this year, a 9.3 percent improvement over last year. Almost two-thirds of sales are completed within three months, a big jump from a year earlier. But practitioner confidence, a good indicator of how the market will look down the road, has barely budged for months. All trend lines are from August 2011 to August 2012.

    Existing-home sales is a seasonally adjusted annual rate, which is the actual rate of sales for the month, multiplied by 12 and adjusted for seasonal sales differences.  Pending home sales is an index that measures ­housing contract activity. An index of 100 is equal to the level of activity during 2001, the benchmark year. Inventory measures the number of existing homes on the market at the end of the month.  Buyer and seller traffic, current conditions, six-month expectations, and time on market derive from a monthly REALTOR® Confidence Index. Results are based on 3,421 responses to 6,000 surveys sent to large and small real estate offices. The survey asks practitioners to indicate whether conditions are strong (100 points), moderate (50), or weak (0). Some data may be revised from previous issues.

     

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    Obama’s New Mortgage Plan To Help Homeowners


     

    President Obama announced Monday a plan to ease eligibility rules for home owners who want to refinance to take advantage of ultra-low mortgage rates and lower their mortgage payments. The administration hopes that by broadening its requirements for the Home Affordable Program that about 1 million home owners will now be able to qualify.

    Here are more details about the newly announced changes to the program:

    What is HARP?

    It’s a program started in 2009 that allows home owners to refinance their mortgages at lower rates without having to meet the typical requirement of having at least 20 percent of equity in their home to do so. Under current guidelines, many underwater borrowers have been ineligible for the program because their home values had to be no more than 25 percent below what they owed their lender. Also, some home owners were unable to afford the closing costs and appraisal fees to participate.

    What’s changing?

    Many of the extra fees to participate in the program have been waived, and home owners’ eligibility won’t be contingent on how far their home’s value has fallen.

    Who’s eligible?

    • Home owners with loans backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac can participate. (Home owners can visit: freddiemac.com/mymortgage or fanniemae.com/loanlookup to determine if their mortgage is owned by either).
    • Home owners must be current on their mortgage.

    When will it take effect?

    The changes could take effect by Dec. 1. HARP also is being extended through 2013 to allow more home owners the opportunity to qualify.

    How successful will this be?

    The administration hopes that by home owners being able to lower their monthly mortgage payments (with an average annual savings of $2,500 expected), they’ll be more likely to stay current on their mortgage and avoid foreclosure. Also, the administration hopes that it will then free up household money to start spending more on other things, which could provide an overall boost to the economy. However, the administration says it realizes that aiding the housing market requires much more than a refinancing plan.

    “This is only one piece of a broader strategy to help the housing market,” says Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan. Donovan also notes federal efforts to help home owners who are delinquent on their mortgages and the unemployed.

    Source: A Guide to Administration’s New Mortgage-Refi Plan,” The Associated Press (Oct. 24, 2011)

     

     
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