Testimonials for Blog

The Santa Clara County housing market continues to show signs of a rising market: more closed sales and shorter days-on-the-market when compared with a year ago. In May, the average price for a single family home stood at $832, 078, a 7.54 percent increase from the $773,722 of May 2011, according to data compiled by MLSListings. The average price of a condo stood at $410,778, a 12 percent jump from the $366,773 of May 2011. From May 2011 to May 2012, the number of days a single family home stayed on the market before being sold shrank from 66 to 53, and it decreased

“National real estate prices in May have finally moved past the continued losses of the last few years. The subsequent stabilization pattern seen in recent months has progressed into the start of moderate growth,” said Dr. Alex Villacorta, Director of Research and Analytics at Clear Capital. “While gains in national home prices over the quarter and year were minimal in May, there are encouraging trends continuing to play out and gaining momentum beneath the surface,” Villacorta added. “Strength in REO-only price trends as well as some early indications of price gains spreading from low tier sectors to the mid-, and

Home prices have taken such a beating and demand for rental units has increased so much that it’s now cheaper to buy a two-bedroom home than to rent one in most major U.S. cities. According to real estate web site Trulia, buying was cheaper than renting in 74% of the country’s 50 largest cities in July. In just 12% of the cities, including New York, Seattle and San Francisco, renting was cheaper. In the remaining 14% of cities, renting was less expensive but close to the cost of buying. In addition to a continuing decline in home prices, rock-bottom interest rates have added

The long, discontented winter for the U.S. home market might be easing. Home prices are inching up in some markets, and it might be a good time to invest. That doesn’t mean that every place makes sense for homebuying. Nationally, new-home sales fell by the largest amount in more than a year in March–7.1%–so there’s no widespread rebound under way, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. You’ll still have to be incredibly careful and look at several factors such as local job growth, housing inventories, and price trends. Whether you’re looking to relocate, eyeing a retirement locale, or scouting investment

Today’s housing market is evolving, and many of the changes we are seeing now are unlikely to go away any time soon. Today, we examine six rising trends that are set to become the new “normal” in the majority of US housing markets in the months and years to come. 1. Distressed or foreclosed properties will continue in high numbers, keeping the supply of vacant homes at levels that will exceed end user demand in many local markets: Areas with an over-supply of existing homes will continue to see prices flat or eroding, until the supply-demand ratio comes back into

If you are one of the estimated 11 million homeowners burdened with an underwater mortgage, a new federal policy changed could be good news for you. Starting in June 2012, when you want to do a short sale to shed mortgage debt and avoid foreclosure, you may not have to wait months to hear back from your bank when you submit an offer fro a purchaser. Instead, if your loan is owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac-you can expect a response within 30 business days, with a final decision no later than 60 days. If you don’t hear back

Home prices still may be down in many metro areas, but according to the latest report from online real estate hub Zillow, the majority of markets will hit bottom by later this year. With the bottom near, an upswing is predicted and it may be as significant as 5%-plus in some areas. “From an economic perspective, the latter part of the first quarter is full of positive news as the spring selling season gets underway,” said Zillow Chief Economist Stan Humphries. “While it is unlikely that national home values continue to rise at this rate through the rest of the

More Southern California homes sold in March than did a year earlier, and price declines slowed as the spring selling season got underway and more traditional home buyers entered a market that has seen record numbers of investors. The Southland’s median home price of $280,000 was essentially flat, down just 0.2% from March 2011. Compared with February, the median price rose 5.8% for a second consecutive monthly increase, real estate research firm DataQuick reported Tuesday. Recent home price data have shown a broad deceleration in price declines in California and the nation’s biggest metro areas. While a slowing decline may

Exterior painting is reported to be one of the top home improvement projects this spring that will boost curb appeal and property value. In fact, expert sources and realtors say that exterior painting and upkeep can increase current market value of a home by 200 percent. ProTect Painters, a national professional painting franchise, offers key tips to all homeowners whether they are looking to sell or stay in 2012. “With the struggling real estate market, it’s important for homeowners to know that most homebuyers make their decision — subconsciously or consciously — within seconds of viewing a home’s exterior,” said

Movoto.com, this week released a report on the homes for sale market in California. As March 2012 closed, real estate inventory was broadly down across the state, with prices showing seasonal increases and small signs of strength. Movoto tracks the major real estate trends in 15 local markets. As March 2012 ended, Movoto reports that real estate inventories in the areas covered were down 7.5% from February and down a whopping 35.3% from March of 2012. Looking more closely at the inventory, the largest drops were in inventories of homes priced below $500,000. In fact, inventory of homes priced over $1,000,000