Whistler is Back!
May 31, 2010 by admin
Filed under Positive Real Estate
- Image via Wikipedia
WHISTLER, BC. –May 29, 2010 Great news, the economy is recovering!! Everyone look up, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, or is there? It seems that this little ray of hope has spurred a large number of first and second homeowners to jump onto an increasingly crowded bandwagon in an attempt to seize the moment.
So what is leading up to this sudden storm? Here in Whistler it has been a while since we have seen any significant upward movement in the real estate market but over the last few months I have seen an explosion of listings and I think it comes down to economic perceptions. Homeowners are seeing and hearing about an economic recovery and as a result individuals who have been holding off are now listing their properties.
With this increased interest, the market is getting dangerously close to flood conditions, with too much supply, far outpacing the demand. The economy may be recovering but this is metaphorically like a house fire and someone yells, “I see the way out”. The next thing you know the exit is congested with people and their movement is limited to a trickle.
I have been watching the market now for quite some time and I hate to say it but I’m joining the bandwagon. I will be listing our home on June 1st and I have really really sharpened my pencil in an attempt to drive a quick offer based on a great price to quality ratio. Today I posted a sneak peak of it on the Whistler Real Estate Buzz, (http://budurl.com/hotpeak) and I am seeing a huge volume of interest judging from the number of hits the page is getting. It would seem that price and quality are key in this highly competitive market. But like everyone else I now have my fingers crossed.
I have seen and heard of a lot of interesting things going on in an attempt to stand out such as additional cash incentives for agents who can turn over properties in 72 hours. I am also beginning to see domino listings, (A long list of done deals but all with a subject to sale). This domino effect is spurred on by sellers dropping prices and then the potential buyers dropping their price on their own homes to take advantage of the previous deal. In turn more and more buyers and sellers join the list, each one hoping that the dominos don’t start falling the wrong way.
For individuals like myself who keep an interested eye on the market here in Whistler, there is a lot of really interesting things happening. I am seeing all these articles on a “Bullish high-end market”, “The Olympic Effect” and “Luxury Homes Sales Soar”. The issue is that these positive messages have the opposite effect and are lowering home prices because of the now unbalanced scale of supply vs demand. In the end though it is really about coming to market with a value proposition to potential buyers. Right now in this unbalanced market you simply have to sharpen your pencils that much further.
For more additional information about market opportunities chat with Matt Warner (matthewlwarner at gmail.com) or visit his personal web site at (http://www.mattwarner.ca) or his Re/Max profile at (http://www.budurl.com/mattwarner). For general up-to-date real estate market movement here in Whistler you can subscribe to the Whistler Real Estate Buzz (whistlerbuzz.wordpress.com)
About Matt Warner – listing agent
Matt Warner grew up on the North Shore of Vancouver and in 1978 the family purchased a small Whistler ski condominium. Warner eventually moved to Whistler permanently in 1987. He has a degree in marketing from Capilano University and became a licensed real estate agent in 1989 where he has been consistently a top producer. “I have an effective easy going approach and put my clients needs and interests at the forefront.” Matt is also an avid squash, tennis and golf enthusiast.
Media contact: Robert Eberhard roberteberhard1(at)gmail.com
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New Jersey’s growth in homes sales
May 30, 2010 by admin
Filed under Positive Real Estate
- Image via Wikipedia
According to figures recently released from the National Association of Realtors, New Jersey was one of only three states that showed positive growth in home sales volume from the fourth quarter of 2009 to the first quarter of 2010. New Jersey’s growth in homes sales bucked both the national trend, where sales growth diminished by 14 percent, and the Northeast regional trend, where sales volume dipped 17.7 percent.
Indeed, the quarter-to-quarter growth in real estate sales in New Jersey, at 6.8 percent, was the best growth in the nation among high-volume states.
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HOI:72.2 Percent of all Homes Affordable
May 29, 2010 by admin
Filed under Positive Real Estate
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National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) showed that 72.2% of all new and existing homes sold in the first quarter of 2010 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $63,800, slightly higher than the previous quarter and near the record-high 72.5% set during the first quarter a year ago.
“Today’s report is very encouraging because it indicates that homeownership continues its more than year-long trend of remaining within reach of more households than it has for almost two decades,” said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones, a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. “With interest rates still hovering at low levels, companies starting to hire new employees and the economy beginning to rebound, this should encourage more home buyers to enter the market and help further stabilize housing and the economy.”
Indianapolis-Carmel and Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, Ohio-Pa., shared the ranking as the most affordable major housing markets in the country.
Runner ups:Syracuse, N.Y.; Dayton, Ohio; and Grand Rapids-Wyoming, Mich.
Five smaller housing markets posted even higher affordability scores :Bay City, Mich., Kokomo, Ind.; Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa-Ill.; Sandusky, Ohio; and Elkhart-Goshen, Ind.,.
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San Francisco up 16.2%, SD 10.8%, LA 6%
May 27, 2010 by admin
Filed under california
The San Francisco area had the strongest quarterly performance among metropolitan regions in a closely watched home price index released Tuesday, although other areas and national numbers showed some weakening.
The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index showed the San Francisco area – which it defines as the counties of San Francisco, San Mateo, Marin, Alameda and Contra Costa – up 16.2 percent in the first quarter, compared with the same quarter in 2009.
Other California areas also showed recovery, with San Diego up 10.8 percent and Los Angeles up 6 percent.
“San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles went way up and came way down, so to some extent this is a rebound from the bottom,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee for Standard & Poor’s, which publishes the index.
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Property Values Around The Globe Will Likely Get A Double Boost When Real Estate Markets Enter A Sustainable Recovery Mode
May 25, 2010 by admin
Filed under Positive Real Estate
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May 25, 2010 — “When real estate markets around the globe enter a sustainable recovery mode, the values of rental properties will likely get a double boost as they will benefit greatly from two key factors” says Dr Petros Sivitanides, author of the book Real Estate Investing for Double-Digit Returns and Associate Professor of Real Estate at the Neapolis University in Pafos, Cyprus. The two key factors that will most likely move in a direction that will boost property valuations when real estate markets turn around are net operating income and capitalization rates (cap rates).
Due to the current global crisis, vacancy rates have been increasing and residential and commercial rents have been declining in many markets around the globe as demand for rental space (residential and commercial) took a dive.
However, when economies enter a sustainable recovery mode, employment growth and household income increases will result in increasing demand for rental space,which will push vacancy rates down and rents up, if supply remains sufficiently constrained. Rising rental rates boost a property’s income earning potential and its net operating income. According to the direct income capitalization approach, which is one of the widely-used methods for valuing income-producing property, higher net operating income results in higher property valuations, all else being equal.
The latest CBRE Global Office Rental Cycle report, for the first quarter of 2010, points to increasing demand for office space and a slowdown of rental declines in the majority of global office markets. According to the report, the latest developments in global office rents suggest that a tentative recovery in the global office property market is emerging. Furthermore, the report indicates that in many emerging Asian markets rents are at the bottom of the cycle, or beginning to rise. However, the timing of sustainable increases in office rents will depend on the timing and magnitude of sustainable demand gains as well as on the extent to which supply will remain sufficiently constrained to allow such demand gains to result in vacancy declines and rental rate increases.
Empirical evidence from the US commercial real estate market has shown that cap rates move in a counter-cyclical fashion relative to the property rent cycle. In other words, when market rents are decreasing, cap rates are rising due to the increasing risk for declining property income and values. This proposition is validated by the developments in many property markets around the globe in the last 12-18 months when cap rates increased considerably due to deteriorating real estate market conditions.
On the contrary, when the real estate market is strengthening, with rising demand, declining vacancy rates and increasing rents, cap rates are compressing. The cap rate compression in rising markets is due to the fact that investors consider that the risk of value declines is considerably lower, while there is an increasing expectation of significant property value gains ahead, as rents continue to rise. Within such an environment, investors are willing to buy at prices that imply a lower initial income return and market capitalization rate. Again, according to the direct income capitalization approach, lower market cap rates result in higher property valuations, all else being equal.
A number of economies around the globe have shown signs of recovery in late 2009 and early 2010. For example, according to preliminary estimates, the US economy expanded for a third quarter in a row as real GDP in the first quarter of 2010 increased 3.2% after increasing by 5.6% and 2.2% in the two previous quarters. The European economies have shown much weaker signs of recovery, as aggregate real GDP in the European Union grew by only 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2009 and by 0.2% in the first quarter of 2010.
The IMF predicts in its latest forecast that the economies of the Euro zone (on aggregate) and the US economy will be expanding in 2010 by 1% and 3.1%, respectively, while in 2011 they are predicted to grow by 1.5% and 2.6%, respectively.
Economic recovery will be a crucial factor in supporting a sustainable property market recovery as well. The timing and strength of property market recovery will differ from country to country and even from location to location within the same country. However, when local real estate markets enter a sustainable recovery path, the values of rental properties will likely get a double boost from rising rental rates and falling cap rates.
As shown in the book Real Estate Investing for Double-Digit Returns, from a strategic point of view, this means that investors who will enter the market close to the bottom of the cycle will likely achieve significant capital gains. Understandably, the speed of property value increases that will take place in each market will depend on the speed by which rental rates will be increasing and cap rates will be falling.
Contact name: Dr Petros Sivitanides
Phone: 0035799218161
E-mail: psivit@gmail.com
Website: www.property-investing.org
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Maine home sales jump 63 percent in April
May 25, 2010 by admin
Filed under Home Resales
- Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Home sales in Maine surged in April as homebuyers rushed to take advantage of record-low mortgage rates and the federal home buyer tax credit.
Sales of existing single-family homes jumped by 63 percent over April 2009. The median sales price increased 3 percent, to more than $165,000.
In all, real estate agents sold 994 homes in Maine in April, up from 610 a year earlier.
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South Fla Homes Prices and Sales Volume Up
May 25, 2010 by admin
Filed under Florida, Home Resales
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The Miami Herald is reporting that home prices and sales volume are on the rise. A dynamic duo not seen in a long time.
After nearly three years of freefall, South Florida single-family home prices tried something new in April: They went up….`There’s no question that the market has been strengthening,” said Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors.
Condo sales once the icon of the real estate boom’s excess had big increases in units sold, a 33 percent increase over the same time a year ago.
to make things look even brighter Florida’s unemployment rate dropped to 12 percent in April after 49 months of increases.
Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/24/1646315/home-sweet-home-with-rising-sales.html#ixzz0oyvWXj3G
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Nation’s Real Estate Market Shows Positive Momentum in Q1 2010
May 23, 2010 by admin
Filed under Positive Real Estate
United Country Real Estate Announces Double Digit Sales Growth
May 23, 2010 — How’s the real estate market? It seems like a simple question, but lately the answer has been clouded by predictions, outlooks and opinions more varied than the weather. It’s no wonder frustrated buyers, sellers, investors and real estate professionals want fewer predictions and more facts. The fact is there’s good news in the real estate market. According to United Country Real Estate (www.unitedcountry.com), a national real estate franchise system with more than 600 offices across the U.S., double digit sales increases in the first quarter indicate an undeniable upward shift.
The company, which serves non-urban markets nationwide through conventional and auction sales methods, reports their first quarter sales were up nearly 16 percent over first quarter 2009 results, with 12 percent increases in units sold over the same period year-to-date. Units sold per office were also up nearly 20 percent in Q1 2010 versus Q1 2009. In their latest data, the National Association of REALTORS® reported a 7 percent increase in existing homes sales for February 2010 versus the February 2009, indicating that buyers appear to be slowly reengaging in the market.
“We began to hear our offices reporting increased buyer activity in their local markets early in 2010, a fact that was confirmed by our first quarter sales results,” said Mike Duffy, president of United Country Real Estate. “Conversations with our brokers and agents also reveal that many are beginning to see other simple signs of change such as more showings and multiple offers on a single property. This upswing in local buyer interest is mirrored in our first quarter web statistics on UnitedCountry.com, which showed a 17 percent increase in visitor sessions over the same period in 2009. March marked our eighth month of positive monthly increases, and the seventh consecutive month of double digit increases. This information tells us that more people are actively looking at real estate and considering making purchases.” Read more
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New Rules for Mortgages
May 18, 2010 by admin
Filed under Real Estate Articles
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The banks, the government, and realtors: they have all seen their share of blame for the collapse of the housing market. Yet Dale Robyn Siegel, author of The New Rules for Mortgages, is convinced homebuyers must also acknowledge their share of the responsibility to avoid a repeat of their mistakes for future buyers. Certainly there are those who have found themselves in extenuating circumstances. However, Siegel explains the reality is buyers walk into this significant investment with hardly the preparation they need.
“If you put me in front of congress to report how to mitigate a future housing crisis, I would say there is one solution,” Siegel claims. “That’s education. There is now mandatory education for mortgage loan officers, which is great. However, every home owner must also be educated about the process, benefits and risks of owning a home.”
With lures of tax credits and “fire sale prices,” many are taking the bait to make the same significant investment 2.8 million people were foreclosed on in 2009. “One positive short term affect of the global financial chaos we are experiencing today is lower interest rates,” Siegel points out. However, the dazzle does not change the fact that buying a home is a major long term financial commitment requiring preparation. For the financial health and sanity of homebuyers, as well as that of the nation, Siegel stresses mandatory education, diligence and patience.
Here are steps she advises become standard procedure for all potential or current homeowners: Read more
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Marin County Up 10.1%
May 17, 2010 by admin
Filed under california, Positive Real Estate
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http://marinrealestateblog.com/ reports that the median price for homes in Marin County rose for the second month, gaining 10.1%. The median price for condominiums also rose. The median price for homes Sold in Marin in April of 2009 was $800,000, the median price for homes Sold in April of 2010 was $865,000. The average price for homes Sold in April of 2009 was $1,022,859, the average price for homes Sold in April of 2010 was $1,164,496. Average days on the market for homes Sold in April of 2009 was 107 days, and the average number of days on the market for homes Sold in April of 2010 was 80 – the shortest time since August of 2008.
