Buying a home during the holidays

Once Thanksgiving is over, there is a perception that the real estate world starts to wind down for the holidays and doesn’t usually reawaken until after New Year’s. But potential home buyers who are prepared to close in today’s competitive market may want to keep house hunting while everyone else is waiting for spring. Here’s Lily Leung from U T San Diego’s take on the situation:

• REALTORS® especially recommend that serious home buyers continue shopping if they have repeatedly lost out on deals because of a limited and continually decreasing supply of homes. Buying intensity typically cools down at the start of fall through early January, which could increase the odds for those with more patience.

• Would-be buyers historically have bowed out during the winter season because they are overwhelmed by holiday spending and commitments. There’s also the aversion of moving in the middle of a school year. Consumer interest typically picks back up again in the New Year and peaks in the spring.

• Certain buyers may be well-served to buy during the winter because of sellers who must move for various reasons including a job change or transfer or the possible sunsetting of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, which lets certain home sellers get tax relief on mortgage debt forgiven by lenders. The possible expiration has pushed home sellers to list and short sell their homes before year’s end.

Foreclosures Tumble Significantly

 

By Gino Blefari, President & CEO, Intero Real Estate Services, Inc

Even as things have improved vastly in the housing resale market this year – both in terms of sales activity and prices – foreclosures have remained a concern. Generally, the foreclosure situation has
improved steadily over the last year, but with so many properties to go through and so many local markets suffering, it’s been slow.

This week, we got news of the state of foreclosures as we near the end of the year. And it’s
looking good. The number of foreclosures completed in October slipped to 58,000 from 77,000 in September and 70,000 a year ago, according to the latest report from CoreLogic.

In addition, CoreLogic reports that fewer properties were in the foreclosure process in October – an indicator of the months to come. About 1.3 million homes were in some stage of foreclosure in October, down 1.3% from September, and accounting for about 3.2% of all mortgages.
The total foreclosure inventory has fallen 9% this year.

For comparison, CoreLogic reports that in the years before the housing market collapse,
2000-2006, an average 21,000 foreclosures were completed in a month. And in total, there have been about 3.9 million foreclosures since September 2008, when the financial crisis kicked into high gear.
Foreclosure activity is spread across the country, but five states accounted for nearly half of all
completed foreclosures in the last 12 months: California, Florida, Michigan, Texas and Georgia.
The five states with the highest foreclosure inventory as a percentage of all mortgaged homes were: Florida with 11.1%, New Jersey with 7.7%, New York with 5.3%, Illinois with 5%, and Nevada with 4.8%.

It appears 2012 was the big turnaround year for foreclosures. As the resale market continues its pickup next year, we’ll likely see even larger drops in the percentage of foreclosures that make up all mortgaged homes. We see the light!

And in related news, a bit of relief for impacted families:

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac each announced their moratorium dates, halting evictions on foreclosure properties during the holiday season so that families can stay in their homes until after the new year. Fannie Mae’s moratorium applies to single-family and 2- to 4-unit properties and runs from Dec. 19, 2012 through Jan. 2, 2013. Freddie Mac’s eviction moratorium starts Dec. 17 and runs through Jan. 2.

Homes are Selling Like Hotcakes

Shifting Gears in Today's Real Estate Market

Real estate transactions aren’t like they used to be 20 years ago. Or 10 years ago. Or even 3 years ago. Today’s sellers often list their property slightly under the current market value, which encourages interest and activity and brings in multiple offers, many times over list price, and many time over the current market value. It’s a strategy that can be used on certain properties.

Conversely, today’s buyers need to make offers at list price or over, depending on the property and their Realtor’s advice. Buyers aren’t at all comfortable doing that. Sometimes they fire the agent who suggest an over-list-price offer and head out to find an agent who will do it their way. We’ve had that happen. That couple still doesn’t own a home, and they’re thinking about firing the second agent.

This article, about conditions in Washington, D.C., reflects conditions right here in Gilroy, and the surrounding area. Read the article, and know that if you are selling or buying, you have to go by the current conditions, which your local Realtor will know. Trust them.