Out like a LION

Posted on March 31, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

From March 1 to March 25, there were 271 new listings in Marin County, a definite improvement in Marin listing activity over the same time period in February, which only saw 203 new listings. 128 Marin home listings went into contract from March 1 to March 25 and 84 properties sold, compared to 63 in the same time period in February.

“In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb.” Have you heard that saying before? It’s often used in reference to weather in the month of March. March usually comes in strong like a lion and goes out as gentle as a lamb. It seems to be the reverse happening with the real estate market… Quiet in the beginning like a lamb, ending the month strong(er) like a lion (or lion cub!)

For April? Bring on the lions …

Fed Cuts Rates 0.75, Bear Stearns Collapses

Posted on March 18, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

Can you say volatility with a capital V? The Federal Reserve cut rates today by 3/4 of a percent in an effort to aid the U.S. economy. This is no surprise in the wake of the Bear Stearns financial crisis, coupled with everything everything else going on in the market. The Fed has cut the benchmark lending rate by 2 percentage points just this year, the most significant cuts in nearly three decades! Sofia Nadjibi, mortgage broker at Union Trust in Greenbrae had this to say in an email today about the rate cut:

History shows us that in the wake of a Fed cut, Bond pricing may initially pop a bit higher in response, but generally very quickly reverses direction and gets worse. Fed cuts fuel inflation, because the lower rates just serve to make it more attractive to buy and finance goods and services…and remember, inflation is BAD for Long-Term Interest Rates, so we will likely see higher interest rates in the next few weeks.

Strap your seatbelt on and hold on tight. We are in tough times and they are going to continue for a while. This is a great opportunity for aggressive buyers to take advantage of the current economic climate and to negotiate hard. There are some amazing opportunities in the marketplace and in general, buyers are in the driver’s seat.

Ross Home Sales February 2008

Posted on March 12, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

The median home sale price in Ross was $6,750,000 in February 2008. The number of homes on the market is just slightly higher from one year ago (14 Ross listings in February 2008 vs 13 Ross listings in February 2007), while the number of Ross homes under contract stayed flat.

The number of closed sales was up significantly from one year ago with four compared to just one Ross home sold in February 2007.

Ross Homes	Feb 2007	Feb 2008	âˆ†	% âˆ†
For Sale	13	14	1	7.69
Under Contract	1	1	0	0
Sold	1	4	3	300.0

Ross Sales	List Price	Sales Price
19 El Camino Bueno	$2,095,000	$1,665,000
59 Bridge Rd	$7,100,000	$5,500,000
2 Upper Rd W	$10,000,000	$8,000,000
104 Laurel Grove Avenue	$8,500,000	$8,500,000

Mill Valley Home Sales February 2008

Posted on March 8, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

The median home sale price in Mill Valley was $1,063,500 in February 2008, down from $1,255,000 in January, and down from $1,125,000 one year ago in February 2007. The number of homes on the market dropped 20% from one year ago, while the number of Mill Valley homes under contract dropped over 45%.

The number of closed Mill Valley home sales was down almost 68% from one year ago. The average days on the market in Mill Valley was 58 in February.

Mill Valley Homes	Feb 2007	Feb 2008	âˆ†	% âˆ†
For Sale	103	82	-21	-20.39
Under Contract	22	12	-10	-45.45
Sold	25	8	-17	-68.00

San Anselmo Home Sales February 2008

Posted on by Ginger Wilcox

The median home sale price in San Anselmo was $929,000 in February 2008, down from $1,000,000 in January, and down from $1,110,000 one year ago in February 2007. The number of homes on the market dropped almost 34% from one year ago, while the number of San Anselmo homes under contract stayed flat.

The number of closed sales was down almost 27% from one year ago. The average days on the market in San Anselmo was 59 in February.

San Anselmo Homes	Feb 2007	Feb 2008	âˆ†	% âˆ†
For Sale	53	35	-18	-33.96
Under Contract	8	8	0	0
Sold	15	11	-4	-26.67

Fairfax Home Sales February 2008

Posted on by Ginger Wilcox

The median home sale price in Fairfax, CA was $630,000 in February 2008, down from $672,00 in January, and down from $735,000 one year ago in February 2007. The number of Fairfax homes on the market stayed flat from one year ago, while the number of Fairfax, CA homes under contract increased.

The number of closed sales was down almost 45% from one year ago. The average days on the market in Fairfax was 110 in February.

Fairfax, CA Homes	Feb 2007	Feb 2008	âˆ†	% âˆ†
For Sale	17	17	0	0
Under Contract	4	7	3	75.00
Sold	9	5	-4	-44.44

Spring has sprung, the Marin real estate market has not..

Posted on March 3, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

While it is not technically spring, it sure feels like it. 73 degree temperatures and a slight burn from my open sunroof- I feel like spring has sprung. The spring real estate market may be here but Marin real estate sales activity is still surprising low. In February 2008, there were 86 single family home sales in Marin County. In February 2007, there were 141 single family Marin home sales.

Marin real estate sales volume is down almost 40%!

Interestingly enough, we have seen a resurgence of multiple offers in the last couple of weeks. Buyers are out looking for new listings. One San Rafael listing received three offers and went $100,000 over asking price! Another Marin house listed under $1,000,000 received five offers.

If the listing is old, many buyers won’t even look at it. The initial offering price is absolutely crucial. Staging and property preparation is also more important than ever. Homes that are not properly prepared are sitting on the market unless they are priced very fair.

When will the typically busy spring Marin real estate market hit?

We are still waiting!

Mandatory Re-Sale Inspections in Marin

Posted on March 1, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

Many cities and towns in Marin County require mandatory re-sale inspections before a seller transfers home ownership to a buyer.

Marin Cities that require resale inspections

Belvedere
Corte Madera
Fairfax
Larkspur
Mill Valley
Novato
San Anselmo
San Rafael
Tiburon

Fees range widely from about $100 to close to $300 in Novato. Ouch! In addition, what is inspected during these inspections vary widely. Most check to make sure permits for any property improvements have been pulled. The cities also note issues that may not be compliant with current building codes, check on zoning, property usage, etc. Re-sale inspections in Marin county do not cover property condition, quality of construction, general defects with the property, termites, etc. Look for a general home inspection and a termite inspection to cover these items.

Marin sellers are strongly encouraged to perform the city/town re-sale inspections prior to going on their market. Your Marin real estate agent should help you arrange this. Some Marin cities and towns take an extended period of time to schedule inspections and also to return the inspection report. If you do not get the report in time, you could end up delaying close of escrow.

If you have not pulled permits, you may be fined, asked to pull those permits retroactively and in some instances, sellers have been asked to remove unpermitted improvements.

I have seen many deals fall apart after the reports are returned on a city/town resale inspection. Buyers don’t like surprises at the last minute. It is much better to know any issues relating to the city inspection before you find a buyer!

Marin home buyers: Never sign off on your resale inspection unless you have seen the report in your hands. Even if you attend the inspection, the city inspector may add mandatory items that you aren’t expecting. View the actual report. Some Marin cities and towns (such as Tiburon)do a re-inspection of required items (with an additional fee). If you fail to make corrections within your allotted time period, you may get fined per day. At last check, Tiburon fines racked up fines at a cool $103 a day. Now that can add up quickly!

Pricing your Marin county home- do zeros matter?

Posted on February 25, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

How should we price that Marin home? We have determined we want to be just under two million. Do we price it at:

$1,999,999?
$1,999,000?
$1,999,575?

DING, DING, DING. We have a winner!

According to a recent study by Cornell University, home buyers pay more for precisely priced properties. (trying saying that 3 times fast!) The study found that home buyers tend to perceive that a price is smaller if there are digits at the end instead of zeros. You can read the full story about precise pricing here.

So, looking for the best price for your Marin County home? Drop the zeros.

Marin Homeowners: Build your home equity!

Posted on February 24, 2008 by Ginger Wilcox

A recent report in the Fresno Bee says 51% of Fresno homeowners who lost their homes through foreclosure had taken out equity loans or refinanced and taken money out- sometimes multiple times.

The findings are pretty telling. The Fresno Association of Realtors President Don Scorodino said that many families used their house as ATM. The average family refinanced or took cash out TWICE before losing their house.

This practice isn’t restricted to Fresno. Across the country and even here in Marin, people are losing their homes because they pulled too much money out.

Our homes are not meant to be ATMs. I know many people who have financed cars, boats, vacations, college tuition, private high school tuition, plastic surgery, designer clothing, pricey remodels and more by pulling out money on their homes.

Our homes are not meant to finance lifestyles we can’t afford. Some people have lost their homes through unfortunate hardships. That makes me sad. What doesn’t make me sad- if you lose your home because you used it as an ATM when the market was hot and bought that new pair of boobs, that bmw 7 series, a few Bottega Veneta handbags, and a trip of lifetime that you couldn’t afford.

In my opinion, if you can’t buy those things with cash, you shouldn’t be buying them.

Many of the world’s wealthiest people have earned or enhanced their position with real estate. Instead of pulling money out, keep the money there. Stop spending, start saving.

Real estate is a great way to get rich, but you have to build equity, not blow it.

Read the whole story about the findings in Fresno here.