The old rule of pricing your home high because you can always come down doesn’t apply in this declining market. Studies show that you’ll get more for your home if it is priced right the first time.
The trick is to be realistic about the current market value of your home. According to a recent Associated [...]

Posted in Helpful Hints, Real Estate No Comments »

Mother’s Day History
Contrary to popular belief, Mother’s Day was not conceived and fine-tuned in the boardroom of Hallmark. The earliest tributes to mothers date back to the annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to Rhea, the mother of many deities, and to the offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Christians [...]

Posted in Celebrity, Holidays, Local Business, Thought For Today, Upcoming Events No Comments »

Now could be a great time to buy a million dollar home in a nice area at a bargain price.
Forbes magazine has identified Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., Marco Island, Fla., Castle Rock, Colo., Annandale, Va., and Bergen County, N.J., as five high-end areas where million dollar foreclosures abound.
Traditionally good borrowers with strong credit scores previously [...]

Posted in Real Estate No Comments »

One little-known reason there are fewer active prospective homebuyers in today’s market is that couples are often still living together in the same residence after their divorce. One spouse cannot afford today’s home prices or qualify for a mortgage. "There is a whole new aspect of divorce that most couples never had to face before," [...]

Posted in Real Estate, Things of Interest No Comments »

The subprime mortgage crisis continues to claim casualties, and some of them aren’t even homeowners.
In California, scores of renters are being kicked out of their homes, even when they haven’t missed a single rent payment.
Shirley and William Hayes love the house they’ve been renting in a comfortable subdivision outside San Francisco. Even so, they’re moving.
"I [...]

Posted in Real Estate, Things of Interest No Comments »

A swath of green is covering the real estate industry. Florida, Nevada and Michigan are the states experiencing the greatest problems with mortgage foreclosures, according to a study and report by the Mortgage Asset Research Institute, LLC, for the Mortgage Bankers Association.
"The current market conditions, compounded by mortgage fraud, are having a detrimental impact on [...]

Posted in Lending, Real Estate, Things of Interest No Comments »

Investors who like to buy homes and multi-unit structures for rentals are finding that college towns are among the most potential markets. While most property values are declining, those in college towns are generally rising, and there is always an ample supply of renters (students and others) in these areas.
It’s more than just a large [...]

Posted in Real Estate No Comments »

Posted in All Things San Diego, Celebrity Sightings, Fun Stuff - Cartoons, Holidays, Local Business, My San Diego Trip, Things of Interest, Upcoming Events No Comments »

Many homebuyers, particularly first-time buyers, are very happy to see home prices dropping in their local market. However, they now face tougher requirements in finding mortgage financing for their newly purchased residence. Mortgage interest rates have been generally rising, with occasional downward dips as was recently experienced. But they are still very low, compared with [...]

Posted in Lending, Real Estate No Comments »

The proposal to decrease conforming mortgage loan limits from the current level of $417,000 has been squelched by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. Any amount over that limit is considered a "jumbo" loan, since it is not salable to the major secondary buyers of mortgages thus making them more expensive for borrowers.
Leading real [...]

Posted in Lending, Real Estate No Comments »