Coastalhomefinder.com

If you are alive and breathing and listing to radio and television or reading websites or an actual newspaper, it is likely you have heard all the talk about the real estate market. You might think it is the end of the world, it is not. If you are thinking of buying a home, all this talk may have delayed your decision or even made you question the wisdom of home ownership entirely. Here is one man's opinion from the New York Times, entitled A Dream House After All.

Maybe the best thing to do first is to take a step back and consider what has taken place over the past year in San Diego real estate, as a whole and specifically the North San Diego Coastal towns we focus on at CoastalHomeFinder.com Here is our updated report with San Diego County real estate stat's which includes residential real estate, condo, town home & detached properties is below:

The North San Diego Coastal Market Trends Report:

One thing to note from both reports is that the Months Supply of Inventory for San Diego and the North San Diego Coastal real estate markets fall within the balanced market category, with north San Diego Coastal having a bit higher supply at 6.9 months, and San Diego County having under 5.3 months supply of housing inventory.

A couple of interesting stats that came out recently in the distress area of the real estate market in San Diego: For July, Notice of Defaults, the first step in the foreclosure process fell approximately 50 percent from a year ago. To be sure there are debates on why this is. It could be there are less people in trouble, more loan modifications getting done or more short sales being approved. It is most likely all of these factors.

Foreclosures: July foreclosures in San Diego county were down 32 percent from a year ago. July Sales Volume for San Diego County was down 19.4% according to MDA DataQuick but median price was up year over year 5.6% to $338,000.

I am not sure who, other than the media, has been surprised by the slowdown recently in the number of sales. We should keep in mind that we have just experienced the largest amount of stimulus in history poured into the real estate market. It has now come to an end. With one big exception, mortgage rates are still extremely low. The tax credit has served it's purpose of stabilizing the real estate market. Now the fear debate has heated up again. We are headed for a double dip some say. After 13 months straight of median price increases in San Diego, we are due for a bit of a pause or dip in median prices. I tend to think the over-hyped stories will end up being just that, nice stories, but only time will tell.

There are a couple of facts to consider: Mortgage Rates are at all time, historic lows, and prices are significantly less that they were just a few years ago. Lastly, investors are buying right now, some very smart folks that called the fall of real estate are back in the game buying.

One of the most helpful ways to figure out your best path, especially in times like these is to look at things from three perspectives:

1. What is the best case scenario? 2. What is the likely scenario? and 3. What is the worst case scenario?

Run the numbers. For example, a $417000 loan today in the 4.25% range would cost approximately $2051 per month for principal and interest. If the market dropped to allow you to buy the same house with a $50,000 lower loan amount of $367,000 but mortgage rates went up to 5.5%, your monthly principal and interest payment would actually be higher at approximately $2083 per month. So I suggest looking at it from several different scenarios.

Make sure you are buying for the right reasons and that those reasons make sense long term. If you would like to discuss what your options are in today's real estate market just call me directly at 760-602-1000 or Loren@Coastalhomefinder.com

See this weeks list of coastal distressed deals 

All good things must come to an end...

So BIG opportunities can begin

I just made a move to Sea Coast Exclusive Properties (formerly Century 21 Sea Coast), which has a new name but a host of knowledgeable real estate pro's working there.  I am excited to be a new member of the team.  We have three North San Diego Coastal locations: Aviara/La Costa, Olivenhain and downtown Encinitas. I'll likely be running in and out of all of them depending on where my clients need me, but the La Costa/ Aviara office will be my official address. In many respects, I am going back to my real estate home. I helped open the La Costa/ Aviara office with the broker/ owner Mike Evans about 13 years ago.  The time has come to move on with my real estate career by returning to work with some of my favorite people in the industry. My phone numbers remain the same (760) 602-1000 is my direct line and my fax number is (760) 476-9999.

Many times real estate agents move because they are unhappy or feel unappreciated at their current office. For me, this was not the case. I truly enjoyed being a part of the Windermere team and will always be thankful for their kindness and professional manner. The folks there are terrific people. They have a great team of agents, staff, brokers, managers and owners. I have said this before but I will say it again, "thank you for showing me the Windermere Way".

There are a number of reasons to make this change in my affiliation. Top on the list is my belief that the big franchise real estate operations have lost their way in the real estate business and their model in many ways is broken. There was a time when their advertising and name recognition meant something. I believe this dominance of the real estate industry will fade in years to come. What does the public think of when asked about a brand name these days? After years and years of advertising you would think there would be one brand in real estate that meant something to the real estate buying and selling public. I would argue there is not. Sure you might recognize a brand as a real estate company but does that determine whom you hire to represent your interests?

More importantly which one lives up to the Realtor Code of Ethics? It is likely your average agent has never read it. Maybe a more important question would be "why" are they in real estate?  Is it to be the number one company or number one agent, and is that the driving force underlying all decisions?  Is it to completely change the perception of a real estate agent for the better and serve clients accordingly? I would submit that the answer to this question significantly influences the experience of the consumer.

An effective real estate agent knows why they are in the business and how they can best serve their clients. The standard real estate drivel of "we are #1*" or "#2*" or "#13*" with all the asterisks and disclaimers is really of no use to the consumer. Too much of what we in the real estate industry put out just seems to miss the point.  It is not about me or my company, or condos or homes or land, it is about people and service. Below is a funny video that captures some of what has gone on for too long.

I welcome the opportunity to sit down and talk with you about what is important to you, give me a call at (760) 602-1000 and "Relax...we'll handle the details."

 Tax Credit Hangover with a side of ebb

The North San Diego coastal real estate market is charging ahead of many markets across America. June 2010 was the 11^th straight month of median price gains, up 15.66% over June 2009. We were due for a pause,  many are calling it the "Tax Credit Hangover", but just as likely is the fact that we need a bit of a pause to catch our breath. To be sure inventories in some locations and price brackets seem to be building, up to 7.1 months supply of inventory in North San Diego coastal detached homes.  For context, last year we had 8.5 months supply of inventory in June of 2009 and this year in April we got down to as low as 4.75 months supply of inventory.

You can download or view my North San Diego Coastal Real Estate Update for July here. This report offers a yearlong month by month graphical display with a breakdown of all the important numbers including Average Days on the Market, Month's Supply of Inventory, Supply & Demand, New Listings and more. This market dynamics report can be done for your specific zip code and price range as well. Just request one by emailing Loren@CoastalHomeFinder.com

A couple other things of note right now are that Notices of Default are down 41% from last year, which means two things are happening. There is a push to cut down the time it takes to do short sales and also there may be less people falling behind on their mortgage payments. Both are good news for the market.

The other item of note is that mortgage rates are at historical lows, if you are in the position to re-finance now would be a very good time to do so. Also there are some great real estate deals in North San Diego County and with rates this low and prices low as well, now is the time to act.  If you are planning on living in San Diego for awhile or want to retire here now is a great time to buy your dream home. This is a list of Coastal Short Sales and Foreclosures now on the market. If you would like to see one of these homes Call (760)602-1000 or email Loren@coastalhomefinder.com

If you would just like to search for homes in San Diego, you can search by school district, draw your own serch area on a map or use our standard search as well.

The Gift

I am a fortunate man. As life moves on it seems the more I see, people I meet and greater experiences I have it is clear there are gifts every day to delight in. I enjoy my calling (work) and so the goal is to hone my craft, seeking more effective tools to serve the people I work with, and for, in the real estate industry. This past week I spent a few days in San Francisco at the Inman Connect Conference. Fortunately, or unfortunately, I typically have goals when I do something. My goal going to Inman Connect was first meet some of the smart people doing really cool things in real estate and second to grab a hold of more effective tools to give my clients a few more advantages in this tough market.

Within the first goal was searching out people I know through social media but have not actually met in person. It is always curious to meet people you have conversed with online but have not actually talked to in person. It was alot of fun.

To start with, the Michigan contingent featuring Mike McClure and Todd Waller at Professional One real estate were awesome to speak with. I had the chance to pick their brains about the future of real estate. These guys have a radio show with the specific goal of raising the bar in real estate professionalism, a worthy endeavor to be sure.

Another terrific agent I met was Daniel Rothamel, The Real Estate Zebra. What  a great guy to have lunch with and a very good one to hear speak as well.

The "social media man" at Trulia threw an really nice party and I was fortunate to speak with Rudy Bachraty for a few minutes. I learned that Rudy and I both are big fans of Gary Vaynerchuk and unfortunately that Rudy is a Jet's fan like @garyvee. Go Chargers!!!

Mike Simonsen, Kristen Evans and the folks at Altos Research are always helpful and my experience with them at Inman was no exception. They really go the extra mile to be supportive.

Reggie Nicolay, Nicole Nicolay and Chad Johnson are dynamic tech trio and doing some incredible work. I am looking forward to seeing how their efforts will turn out on a project we are working on.

As for some of the headliners at the event, the "Craig" founder of Craigslist was there, Robert Scoble an incredible techno man and Kara Swisher, the awesome technology writer at the Wall Street Journal. She writes some funny and insightful articles and was a amazing to see in person, very funny... speaking of amazing check one of her latest blog post on AllThingsD.com  "everything is amazing and nobody is happy" , the  video clip used from the viral video is hilarious.

I am glad to be back home safe and sound, in Carlsbad California and both goals were reached. I will have some new tools coming on line soon to benefit our clients and community.

One tool we have had for some time is our GPS home search from your Smartphone, it works with iPhones, Droids and most cell phones equipped with GPS.  So before you drive around looking for homes in your favorite North San Diego coastal town get this Home Search Application. Use it then tell me what you think by commenting here. You might just win $100 Starbucks Card to keep you awake while you are driving around looking for a home.