Tag Archives: REALTOR

Real Estate

Working With Short Sales, They Are Worth The Trouble

Short sales – a real estate transaction in which the homeowner needs to sell the property, but owes more on the mortgage than the home currently is worth – continue to dominate the housing market, but these real estate transactions aren’t for everyone.

  • Typically with a short sale, the homeowner is underwater and has experienced a financial hardship such as a job loss.  To limit the damage to his credit rating, a homeowner may attempt to work with his lender to negotiate a short sale.  Not only must the bank approve of the short sale itself, it also must agree to the price, since the bank will accept the difference as a loss.
  • Unlike foreclosures, in which the owner has walked away and the bank is looking to unload a vacant – and sometimes vandalized – property, a short sale isn’t a distressed home that will sell at an extremely low price.  According to data from RealtyTrac, short sales typically sold for nearly 10 percent less than the market price in the first quarter of 2011, whereas foreclosures sold at an average discount of 35 percent.
  • Home buyers wanting to purchase a short sale must have patience.  In most cases, when a buyer makes an offer on a house, he receives a response from the seller within a few days, or even hours.  With a short sale, the bank must approve of the sale and bank representatives are overloaded with cases.  It may take 30 days or longer for a buyer to receive a response from the bank.
  • In a traditional real estate transaction, it is common for a home buyer who currently owns his home to make his offer contingent on selling his current home.  In short sales, most banks will not approve an offer that is contingent on the buyer selling his current home, as too many things can go wrong.
  • Banks also typically won’t consider short-sale offers that have inspection contingencies in them, so buyers can either do an inspection prior to making an offer or forgo an inspection altogether.
  • Even with the challenges associated with short sales, buyers should not avoid these transactions.  Being prepared ahead of the time and working with an experienced REALTOR® can help buyers avoid frustration and surprises down the line.

Interested in a short sale?
Call or write:
John J. O’Dell ® GRI
O’Dell Realty
(530) 263-1091
jodell@nevadacounty.com

Real Estate

Home Prices Drop In February


Following three months of sales gains, California home sales posted a weaker-than-expected performance and declined in February, according to data from the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.).  The statewide median price of an existing, single-family detached home sold in California also declined in February.

  • Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 497,660 in February, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide.
  • February’s sales were down 9 percent from January’s revised pace of 547,080 units, and down 4 percent from the 518,390 sales pace recorded in February 2010.  The statewide sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2011 if sales maintained the February pace throughout the year.  It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.
  • The median price of an existing, single-family detached home sold in California in February declined 2.8 percent to $271,320, from a revised $279,140 in January, and was down 2.5 percent from the $278,190 median price recorded for February 2010.  The February 2011 median price was the lowest since May 2009, when it was $263,440.
  • “The market pulled back in February, following three months of sales gains, when the ramifications of the robo-signing delays from last fall pushed sales into the period from November of last year to January,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young.  “February’s sales drop indicates the effects of the foreclosure freeze are diminishing, and the market is returning to a more moderate sales pace.”
  • C.A.R. has posted median prices, unsold inventory stats, sales figures, time on market data, and more by county and region.  To view this information, click here

Read the full story

For all your real estate needs, call or write:

John J. O’Dell
Real Estate Broker
O’Dell Realty
(530) 263-1091
Email John at jodell@nevadacounty.com

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