As a followup to the previous 2 blogs about what is available on EnglePropertiesOnline here is the 3rd in the series. For Sellers, you can set up a search on EnglePropertiesOnline to a ¼ or ½ mile radius of your home to get a better feel of what homes are selling for in your neighborhood. You can select to have this report sent to you on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. After the initial report, only new listings or updated listings are reported. Get a Marketing Analysis done A marketing analysis is done by a Real Estate professional and provides you with data to help you value your home for sale. While current houses that are for sale may be a good initial indicator, what really counts is the actual selling price of the home, and how long it took to sell. These are the two key points ... 06/18/2009

Hi again neighbors.  Following up on my last blog relating general tools available on the EnglePropertiesOnline website, here is a blog specific to buyers. As a buyer, you need a variety of tools to help in the decision making process of getting a new home. The first step in the process is to determine how much can you afford, and linked to that how much will a lender loan you. Talk to your Realtor ® to help you determine what home value you probably qualify for. Very early on in the house-hunting process (maybe even before you start looking for homes) you will need to get what is called a Pre-Approval letter. The Pre-Approval letter is more in-depth than the Pre-Qualification letter. More information about the differences between these can be found here. Again, your Realtor ® can assis... 06/18/2009

Hi Neighbors, Where to go to get General Information about the Market If you are interested in tracking the homes for sale in a specific area - such as around your home, go to EnglePropertiesOnline and the first tab on the left navigation bar "Find a Home". Then click on "Advanced Search" at the bottom of the screen. There you can enter the address of your home, or the address of a specific home in the area you are interested in. You can discontinue the report at any time - or change the search parameters. Also on  Engle Blog and Resources, you can click on the tab to get information about market conditions as well as common links to important research web sites such as: Get Pre-Qualified -  in almost all cases now, sellers require that you be pre-qualified for a loan or have proof of c... 06/18/2009

Cautious as a cat... that's how we're watching our market here in California.  This article from Wall Street Journal reports a mixed bag, and I choose to emphasize the positive.  It's been a long time coming.  Keep the faith!  Any sign of recovery can be taken as a sign that the market is bottoming. SF BAY AREA UP 9.2%, San Diego UP 5.2%, Santa Cruz County UP 6.3%, Santa Barbara UP 31.3%.  Some regions, including Sacramento, showed a slight decrease. In Silicon Valley's Santa Clara County, the median price rose 3.6% after a year-over-year fall of 38.2% Wall Street Journal, May 29, 2009 By JIM CARLTON SAN FRANCISCO -- California's median price for existing homes rose 1.4% in April from March, marking the second consecutive monthly increase in housing prices and prompting some industry of... 06/14/2009

WE'RE IN A GOOD MARKET FOR DEALS.  GET READY Today, it is more important than ever to acquire information and knowledge first, before making a move.                         Get educated.  In this market, more than ever, agents, buyers and sellers need more education, more insight to the playing field.  The more we know, the more powerful our actions become. Today there are endless sources for education, ranging from books at your local library, websites, newsfeeds and blogs... to in-person seminars and forums. Connecting with people in the real estate industry provides important information required to be successful in achieving goals.   Decide what you want. This sounds easy, and yet can be the most difficult part of any process. However, as more knowledge and information is acquired, ... 06/14/2009

Hats Off to Senators for Pushing for $15,000 Tax Credit for ALL Buyers Few of us know that in January of 2008 a $15,000 tax credit for home buyers was proposed to Congress. When the stimulus package was actually passed, the $15,000 proposal was reduced to an $8000 tax credit for first-time home buyers.  Per the excellent video below, the estimated cost of the proposed $15,000 credit was 34.2 billion dollars at that time.  Since then the US has spent 5.2 trillion dollars trying to fix our economy.  Guess what?  A new bill was introduced yesterday, June 10, 2009.  Senator Johnny Isakson, who was a real estate agent for 22 years before turning politician, and Senator Christopher Dodd are leading a move to jump-start the housing market by re-introducing the $15,000 tax credit -  nearly doub... 06/12/2009

 A tiny pearl of positive news.  Smallest annual gain in foreclosures since June 2006.     Per AP news article today, The number of U.S. households in foreclosure is down from April to May.   Foreclosure filings fell 6 percent in May from April, according to RealtyTrac Inc. More than 321,000 households received at least one foreclosure-related notice last month - 18 percent more than a year earlier - but the smallest annual gain since June 2006. One in every 398 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing last month, according to RealtyTrac.   Banks repossessed about 65,000 homes in May, up from 64,000 in April, due to big increases in several states including Michigan, Arizona and Nevada. US sales of foreclosures and distressed properties were about 45 percent of the market in April, acco... 06/11/2009

I hope you are keeping your eye on the PULSE of the MARKET.  Let me know your readings. ActiveRain is such a fantastic place to share information, knowledge and inspiration. On a review of multiple listings in our area of California, I was pleasantly surprised when I compared April CMA's to May... In our lovely city of Lincoln, California, 30 miles NE of Sacramento, there appears to be movement, in an up direction.  At least in pending sales for Sun City Lincoln Hills, a beautiful retirement community for active people over 55.  Here's the data:  There are currently 28 pending sales, compared to 4 during the month of April.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to do the math.  SOLDS in April are logged at 15, with May showing 16, just about even, with median selling price of $377,500.  S... 06/10/2009

Here's some Good News in Real Estate.  We need to emphasize the positive and de-emphasize the negative.  The times they are a' changin'.   NOTE:  5 out of 10 cities listed below are in Texas.  And we all know that Everything in Texas is BIG. Ten Cities With Rising Home Values, By Louis Jones, Kiplinger, Jun 5th, 2009 Think that no real estate market is safe? Believe it or not, there are cities where home values have held their own. Their economies are well diversified, and their population growth has been slow, keeping unemployment low and speculative building to a minimum. Check out these ten cities that have seen an increase in median home value. Change in median home price is from the fourth quarter 2007 to the fourth quarter of 2008, which is the most recent data from Fiserv Lending... 06/09/2009

  Monterey is my hometown.  So I often read the Monterey Herald Newspaper online.  I love this article.  It is a reminder that in America we are truly blessed.  More residents on board from US and the UK than any other countries.  As I've learned from friends in Egypt, if we lived in many other countries, it would be nearly impossible to immigrate out of poverty.  To feel GREAT, be GRATEFUL. NOW, to find the $1 Million... all things are possible with faith and elbow grease. Residents circle globe in their armchairs By LANE WALLACE Herald Staff Writer Updated: 06/09/2009    The World cruise ship anchored in Monterey on Monday has 165 units    The people on the ship anchored in Monterey Bay just off Monterey Municipal Wharf No. 2 are not on vacation - they live there. The World is a float... 06/09/2009

Source: RealtyTrac, June 8, 2009 There is big news for housing sales this week.  Jump in pending home sales by 6.7% in April. Housing sales and pending sales contracts are up, dramatically in some markets, and a rebounding real estate sector could soon start stimulating the broader economy. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress last week that essentially the worst is over, the housing market is stabilizing, and we're heading out of recession in the second half of the year. Pending home sales jumped by 6.7 percent in April. That was the third straight month of significant increases, and the highest pending sale total for any month in the past seven years. In the Northeast, pending sales were up last month by 33 percent.  In the Midwest, they rose by just under 10 percent, a... 06/09/2009

Startup Meeting June 24, 2009 for   Real Estate Investment Club of Lincoln, California Join us!    Explore the world of real estate. Be part of a brand new club so that we may learn from each other's combined experience, talents, and knowledge. Opportunities for teaching, learning, and sharing experiences.    Holding monthly meetings.  All are welcome.  Agents, brokers, investors, first time buyers, general public, residents of Lincoln and beyond, anyone who believes that knowledge is power and the best way to learn is from each other.  Startup meeting will be held at Sun City, Lincoln. Tuesday, June 24, 2009, 6:30pm to 8:00pm -      Orchard Creek Lodge, Sun City, Multi-Media Room See announcement to be posted in June 15, 2009 Sun City Lincoln Hills Compass Magazine No need to RSVP, jus... 06/06/2009

Call this Department of Justice toll free number. REMEMBER:  Cell Phone Numbers Go Public next month. REMINDER.... all  cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sales calls. ....... YOU WILL  BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS Even if the message is saved on your phone, you will be charged for the minutes to listen to it. To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone (and from your land line also!)     888-382-1222 It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time. It blocks your number for five (5) years.   You must call from the cell phone number you want to have blocked.   You cannot call from a different phone number. HELP OTHERS BY PASSING THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS.. It takes about 20  seconds 06/06/2009

New Law Impacts Foreclosed Property Tenants                                             "Helping Families Save Their Home Act of 2009" (S.896) was signed into law by President Obama on May 20, 2009. The bill includes the "Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act" and amendments to Section 8 of the "United States Housing Act of 1937." Both portions of the bill set forth a new 90 day rule for tenants living in a foreclosed property. Effective immediately, tenants can remain in the foreclosed home until the end of their lease, unless the bank sells the property to someone who intends to make it his/her primary residence. Even without a lease, renters must be allowed to stay in their home for 90 days after the foreclosure. The bill included a sunset clause which scheduled this provision to exp... 05/29/2009

        The good news is that 88 percent of America's homeowners are current with their mortgage payments.  That leaves a record 12 percent of homeowners behind on their payments or in foreclosure and the housing crisis isn't expected to top out until the end of next year, per the Mortgage Bankers Association on Thursday. Nearly 6 percent of fixed-rate mortgages to borrowers with good credit were in the foreclosure process. About 50% of all adjustable-rate loans made to borrowers with shaky credit were past due or in foreclosure. The worst of the trouble continues to be centered in California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida, which accounted for 46 percent of new foreclosures in the country.   The number of people receiving unemployment benefits was the highest on record.  The U.S. unemploy... 05/28/2009

 The beliefs in self-actualization and positive thinking are part of who I am.  Truths I have personally experienced.  My mother taught me, without her even knowing it.  She once drew a sketch of a house she imagined buying, in Carmel, CA.  It was a distinctively European house with wood cross-trimmings on it, much like homes in Germany.  Now this was wishful thinking, as she had a limited income and had been living in an apartment in Carmel for years.  It was not long after she made that sketch that an unexpected inheritance from England allowed her to buy just such a house. This was a gift from the heavens... or perhaps her positive thoughts had something to do with it... You decide.  The Law of Attraction claims to have roots in Quantum Physics. According to proponents of this law, t... 05/26/2009

 My Dad served in WWII, Korea, and Viet Nam.  He met our mother in Cairo, Egypt and they had a beautiful military wedding there.  My grandparenets, who were from the Island of Malta, gave away their only daughter and watched her leave for the USA on a ship for warbrides in 1946.     A career military man, Dad moved our family to  Japan, Germany, Ohio, Oregon, Idaho, West Virginia and a few other places during his tours of duty.  Most of the time he was responsible for supplies, and escaped many of the dangers of war, because he could use a typewriter!  His abilities, fortitude and perseverance made him the Chief of Supply at several Army bases, the last one being Ft. Ord, California, where our family put down roots.  For me, seeing the world from the vantage point of other countries and... 05/24/2009

 It's tangible, it's solid, it's beautiful. It's artistic, from my standpoint, and I just love real estate.     -Donald Trump The Donald's not alone either...there are at least 45 other billionaires who think real estate is a good investment. In an article titled The 10 Common Traits of Real Estate Billionaires , Karen Hanover says 46 of the world's billionaires made their fortunes in real estate. One of the beauties of real estate is that, for middle and high income individuals alike, the tax advantages can be substantial. Here are just three things to consider about real estate: 1.  Real Estate cash flows are sheltered from taxes. Depreciation is a long term write off against cash flow 2.  Real Estate has the ability to defer profit over time with an installment sale.  Installment sal... 05/23/2009

     California Home Sales at Foreclosure Rise by 35 Percent in April 2009.    Notices of foreclosure dropped and sales of foreclosures increased by 35 percent last month in California. A report by ForclosureRadar added that a record number were purchased by third parties, at an average of 28 percent below market value.  A total of 13,550 foreclosed California properties were taken to auction last month, representing $6 billion in loan value.  The number of those actually sold was 1,634 (which was 12% of the total offered) increased 52% over March and 217% over April 2008.  The remaining 11,900 properties received no bid at auction and now are bank owned properties (REO's).  These represent $5.3 billion in total loan value. Almost 90 percent of the foreclosed loans last month were origi... 05/23/2009

    Obama salutes veterans this Memorial Day weekend  - AP - May 23, 2009 President Barack Obama saluted veterans and urged his countrymen to do the same this Memorial Day weekend, saying the nation has not always paid them proper respect. In his weekly radio and Internet address Saturday, Obama said people can honor veterans by sending a letter or care package to troops overseas, volunteering at health clinics or taking supplies to a homeless veterans center. He said it could also mean something as simple as saying "thank you" to a veteran walking by on the street. "We have a responsibility to serve all of them as well as they serve all of us," Obama said. "And yet, all too often in recent years and decades, we, as a nation, have failed to live up to that responsibility. We have failed... 05/23/2009