Originally posted at www.bigbearilluminated.com Lately, I have been answering alot of questions regarding REO properties and things buyers need to be aware of. As it happens, my colleague Tyler Wood has also been fielding the same questions. In order to answer them, we made a short video that goes over some important things to remember any time you purchase an REO property. Here is the link, I hope it is informative. 10/10/2008

Originally posted at The Big Bear Skinny.     Below are the details on home sales in Big Bear for the 2nd and 3rd quarters of 2008. See the 1st quarter home sales here. Why am I posting the 2nd and 3rd quarters together? Because I was lazy (or busy) in July and did not post the 2nd qrt. numbers then :). 2008 - 2nd Quarter #s Year Q2 # of Home Sales Median Sales Price Days on the Market List Price to Sales Price Ratio 2008 179 $282,590 132 94% 2007 196 $339,450 122 95% 2006 308 $305,000 72 97% 2005 473 $277,000 68 98% 2004 492 $216,000 81 98% 2003 371 $180,000 49 97% 2008 - 3rd Quarter #s Year Q3 # of Home Sales Median Sales Price Days on the Market List Price to Sales Price Ratio 2008 204 $232,500 128 94% 2007 206 $299,900 126 95% 2006 291 $320,000 85 96% 2005 537 $295,000 54 98% 2004 5... 10/09/2008

I just closed escrow a few days ago on an unfinished bank owned property, and let me tell you, it was very difficult. With the market in upheaval the way it is, getting a perfect house funded can be challenging. If the home in question is an unfinished bank owned home, get ready for an uphill battle. When I say unfinished, I don't mean it was never finaled. The home was finaled and completed, but a water pipe broke and flooded the whole downstairs. Insurance paid and a contractor was hired to do the repairs. Unfortunately, the home went into default before the repairs could be completed. In consequence, the upstairs loft flooring, loft and stairway railings, and all the kitchen and bathroom sink fixtures were not completed. We put the house into escrow for $540,000 with my buyer putting... 10/07/2008

Originally posted at The Big Bear Skinny. If you are thinking of buying or selling a home in Big Bear, you may want to take a look at the absorption rate of homes that are currently for sale. This is a good way to become more informed on the current real estate market conditions in a particular area. There is an easy to understand article here describing what the absorption rate is and what it means for the real estate market. In simplistic terms, it is a mathematical equation that tells the amount of time it will take for a specified set amount of properties to be absorbed under current real estate market conditions. To get the most accurate reading for the Big Bear real estate market, you take the number of properties sold in the past month and divide that into the number of properti... 10/05/2008

Originally Posted At www.bigbearilluminated.com What a crazy market we are in these days. Gone are the days of conventional loans on traditional listings. Gone are the days of your only worry being if you made your offer high enough to get the property. Or if you priced your listing high enough to get maximum value without scaring everyone away. No, my friends, we are in a new era of doing business in our career of choice. Let me give you some examples. During the month of September, I have closed five escrows, put two homes into escrow and taken one listing. Pretty straight forward so far, huh. Well, here is where it gets tricky. The first home I closed was not even in our local MLS. I found it by looking at local homes put into out of area MLS's by out of area agents. If I didn't put... 09/22/2008

When dealing with a bank in a foreclosure situation, you never know what you are going to get. Sometimes the bank is just happy to get the property off of their books and are extremely easy to deal with. Other times, not so much. I recently wrote a blog about how a certain bank was being a real pain in the you know what over a property my clients wanted to buy. My clients put their first offer in a couple of months ago and the bank refused to even negotiate. We decided to wait another month and try again. sure enough, the property didn't sell and the bank lowered their price. This time we came up $10k and made another offer. Same story. The bank would only come down $500.00 and no more. So, we decided to wait some more. After two weeks, the listing agent contacted us and said they woul... 09/15/2008

I have some clients who are looking for a little vacation place up here in Big Bear. They have done the math and decided that they can go up to $110,000 and not a penny higher. They are set on this number and will not, for any reason, go above it. As you can imagine, there are not a great many homes in this price range to choose from. Very slim pick-ens. After a few appointments, we found a little place that they really like. It's a bank owned property on the outskirts of town. It is located in an area that is not appealing to most buyers. It is kind of far from town and located right on a semi-busy street. The pluses are, it is in good shape and has a nice size lot for the money. The property is listed at $119,000. After some discussion, we made an offer of $110,000 for the home. Since... 09/07/2008

So you are looking for a log style cabin and you're not sure what type of construction fits your needs...a full log home or a half log construction?  I've put together the pros and cons of full log home ownership versus the half log construction (log sided construction).    Half Log Construction: One of the greatest advantages to choosing a half log construction is the opportunity for a variety of interior finishes.  You can choose which walls you want drywall and which walls you want to put wood in.  Usually half log constructions are lighter and brighter.  They offer less maintenance...no settlement issues found in full log homes so that means no slip joints or screw jacks.  This might all sound like contractor mumbo jumbo, but it is something you'll find out during your discovery per... 08/27/2008

43025 MONTEREY, BIG BEAR LAKE 92315 BRAND NEW LOG STYLE GOING UP IN MOONRIDGE. SKI SLOPE VIEWS, LEVEL PARKING & ACCESS TO MAIN FLOOR. 2 STORY W/MAIN FLOOR ON TOP LEVEL. STAINLESS STEEL APPLIANCES.  WOOD FLOORS IN KITCHEN & ALL BATHS, SLATE FOR SHOWERS. GRANITE COUNTERTOPS IN KITCHEN & BATHS. OIL BRUSHED BRONZE HARDWARE. T&G CEILING, LOG TRIM THRUOUT.  SOLD BY GILLIGAN LOG HOMES.  CLOSED ESCROW 5/22/2008 FOR $425,000.  1057 HERITAGE TRAIL, BIG BEAR CITY 92314 TRULY ONE OF A KIND CUSTOM FULL LOG HOME BUILT BY TED KNIGHT. CATHEDRAL CEILINGS WITH LOG AND WOOD ACCENTS, COUNTRY KITCHEN WITH BREAKFAST NOOK, MAGNIFICENT REAL ROCK FIREPLACE. OVER AN ACRE OF LAND BACKING TO SEASONAL STREAM AND PRIVATE SETTING. GREAT MOUNTAIN FEEL.  SITUATED IN PRESTIGIOUS MEADOWBROOK ESTATES, THIS HOME WAS THE H... 08/27/2008

Above is the most recent deed recording information for the Big Bear Lake area. July recordings jumped up to 55% of the 10 year average. This is a 9% increase in the number of recordings over 2007! Year to Date we have had 483 deed recordings and that represents a 56% decline from the 2007 numbers. It is also a 58% decline from the 10 year average. What does this mean for buyers and sellers in this market? For Buyers, it is still the best market in decades. Inventory is stable, and opportunities are abundant.   Seller's are not seeing activity until they price their property at or below market value. Price is the single most important factor in selling your home. If you would like to discuss Big Bear market trends, please feel free to call me. Steve Hirschler Associate, The Tim Wood Gr... 08/22/2008

Originally Posted At www.bigbearilluminated.com I just put this bank owned beauty into escrow today. It is located in the prestigious Bear Loop neighborhood located on the north shore of Baker Pond. This home was built and sold in 2006 for a selling price of $869,000. It boasts  3,154 square feet of living space with a two car, stamped concrete driveway. It is situated on a 7,400 square foot lot. The views of the lake, airport, eagle preserve, and ski resorts are top notch. The house suffered water damage in early 2007 and then went into foreclosure. My client is a contractor and can repair the damage at a very low cost. We got the home for only $540,000. Now, we just have to make sure we get it closed:) Give me a call if you would like to see all the great homes Big Bear has to offer. 08/12/2008

Originally Posted At www.bigbearilluminated.com Like most Realtors today, I have been dealing with quite a few bank owned properties. Like conventional listings, they come in all shapes, sizes, and conditions. Some banks price them to move, others not so much. For every REO I see that is a great buy, I see another that is only so so. Some banks respond to an offer right away, some take a long time. Some banks will negotiate with other, while others will not budge. For instance, a few weeks ago I had some clients who made an offer on a bank owned home in Erwin Lake. The home was priced at $126,000 and was in decent condition. Like everyone else, my clients were after the best deal they could get. In that spirit, we put in an offer of $100,000. I didn't expect the bank to accept it, but I... 08/07/2008

Old Miners' Day is back with lots of fun things to do the first weekend of August.  Click here to read more about the Old Miners' Day History and Calender of Events.  Square Dancing Aug 1, 2 at The Big Bear Middle School.  The annual Old Miners' Square Dance weekend invites dancers from Southern California clubs to join in the fun. Dance both Friday and Saturday nights, August 1st and 2nd, at 7:30 pm. There will also be a Squaredance Workshop from 12:30-4:30pm on Saturday. For information, please call 909.866.3784. Horseshoe Tournament Aug 2 over at B's Backyard Barbeque.  Registration begins at 8:30 am and competition goes from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm. Call for information - 909.866.4607. 59th Annual Miners' Day Parade Aug 3  Pick your spot along the Big Bear Boulevard route to see the final... 07/19/2008

Originally Posted at www.bigbearilluminated.com This bank owned home is in the highly desirable Fox Farm neighborhood in Big Bear Lake. If you are looking for alot of square footage for a small price, this is the home for you. It measures in at an impressive 3,204 square feet. It boasts 5 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, and a two car garage on a 7,314 square foot lot. This home was originally listed at $748,876 before it went into foreclosure. It is now priced at a very affordable $349,900. If you would like to see this home, or any other home, bank owned or not, give me a call or shoot me an email.  07/12/2008

Waht is going on this weekend, July 11-13 2008? Well, quite a bit... How about... 11-12th Big Bear Woman's club 67th annual flower show - Big Bear Performing Arts Center, Free admission, refresments served, all entries welcome (909) 866-6777 or (909) 866-4970 11-13th Corvetts West Big Bear Bash - Bartlett Parking Lot in the Big Bear Village 3 day event with lots of very clean cars and their proud owners www.corvetteswest.com  12-13th Big Bear PaddleFest - Captain John's Fawn Harbor Marina (909) 866-3414 or www.gopaddleacanoe.com 12th Xeriscape Garden Tour - Emingers Mountain Nursery. 9am-12pm 41223 Big Bear Blvd. (909) 866-5006 12th Old Miners Days: Miss Clementine Pagent @ B's Backyard BBQ Authentic period outfits. Lots of fun! (909) 585-6638 Or, just come up, rent a boat, rent a horse... 07/11/2008

      Welcome to Big Bear! Big Bear-- Big Bear is a world of natural beauty, crisp, clean alpine air, and endless four-season recreation. High above the hustle of everyday life, Big Bear Lake provides the ideal getaway for day or for a long vacation. An easy drive from virtually anywhere in Southern California, Big Bear Lake offers numerous recreational opportunities including boating, sailing, water skiing, fishing, hiking, camping, mountain biking, horseback riding, golfing, down hill and cross-country skiing, snowboarding, snow-shoeing, and more. Big Bear Lake is also host to numerous events throughout the year including Old Miner's Days, Oktoberfest, mountain bike racing, hobie cat regattas, jazz festivals, car shows, trout classics, rodeos, ski and snowboard competitions, and more... 07/10/2008

Many of the foreclosed properties in Big Bear are older, run down cabins that need a lot of work. Being a a second home community, buyers usually don't want to purchase a property they need to spend all their free time fixing up. Lucky for them there are some newer (even brand new) Bank Owned Properties currently on the market. Some of these homes were built by speculators that missed the "hot" market, others are re-sales that had previous owners lose them to the bank. The advantage to these properties is the energy efficiency level (windows,insulation and heating units), plumbing and electrical systems shouldn't need to be upgraded as they were built to stricter codes than older homes. There may be some minimal work to do on these properties, but it should mostly be cosmetic. Less time... 07/03/2008

As shown above, currently there are 18 pending sales in the Moonridge area. 59 properties have sold year to date in Moonridge. Closed Sales have included: 7 under $200,000 21 between $200,000 - $300,000 17 between $300,000 - $400,000 7 between $400,000 - $500,000 2 between $500,000 - $600,000 1 between $600,000 - $700,000 2 between $700,000 - $1,000,000 2 over $1,000,000 Interesting Facts We have 216 active listings in the Moonridge area. Using the average sales of 10 per month through June,  the absorption rate tells us the we have a 21 month supply. Closing prices are within 7% of list price. Almost 65% of the sales in Moonridge are now under $400,000. With 271 residential sales in Big Bear, Moonridge has had 21.8% of the total number of sales year to date. Last year in the same peri... 06/29/2008

Originally posted at www.bigbearilluminated.com In today's uncertain market, never count your chickens until they are hatched. Even if the buyer seems rock solid, the carpet can be pulled out from under your feet at a moments notice. Lenders are canceling programs at a rate that is difficult to comprehend. They will preapprove your buyer at one rate, only to change it the next day. A perfect example of this happened to me this week. My buyer was, in my opinion, very solid. He has a long term job and is paid a good salary. As I always do, I asked questions to ascertain his ability to buy on our appointment together. He has already been approved for an FHA loan on a home off the mountain he decided against purchasing. He was very certain he would have no problem getting preapproved again ... 06/26/2008

Originally posted at The Big Bear Skinny. Given the current real estate climate, bank owned or REO (real estate owned by banks) properties have become highly sought after by today's buyers. Whether or not they ultimately end up purchasing one, most buyers are starting off with this thought in mind. Naturally, these buyers are looking for a deal and most bank owned properties fit this category perfectly. It is not uncommon to see Big Bear REO properties selling from 75 to 90 cents on the dollar as compared to similar homes on the market. While buying a bank owned property can save you some money, there can be some major contractual differences when buying a property from a bank as compared to a typical and the standard C.A.R. purchase contract. It is very common for a bank to have their ... 06/24/2008