Tag: san francisco real estate market

Down Payment Assistance Programs…

The California Association of Realtors has a wealth of information for buyers and sellers – not just us Realtors.  I thought I would pass along the Consumer Page – for the most important link in any buyers life – DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS!  Yes, you read the correctly – down payment assistance.  Not every area has programs, and of course you must qualify.  However, I posted the online search to my Facebook page – so please feel free to click on:

https://www.facebook.com/TheCatonTeam

And of course, when you need a Realtor – please call the Caton Team!

Buying or selling a home is one of the most important transactions a person will ever make in his or her lifetime.  Nothing less than a qualified, trained professional should be entrusted to assist in that process.  This site is dedicated to educating consumers about the intricacies of buying and selling a home, and how a REALTOR® can help:

First-Time Home Buyer? Here’s What You Should Know About Your Appraisal


Home ownership is the ultimate dream for many in the United States, but going through it for the first time can be a daunting process. First-time home buyers often misunderstand one of the key components of the home buying process: the appraisal. It is one of the most important tools to ensure buyers pay a fair and equitable price for the property they purchase.

To learn more, read this financial education article in the Huffinton Post, by David S. Bunton, President of the Appraisal Foundation.

 

The California Down Payment Resource Directory

The California Down Payment Resource Directory is a powerful search tool that identifies current down payment assistance programs in communities throughout California. Buyers can search by city or address for public- and private-funded assistance programs including FHA/VA, HUD, affordable fixed-rate mortgages, rehab loans, and more. Start your search for down payment assistance now!

http://www.car.org/aboutus/forconsumers/downpaymentresource/

 

Homeowner Legislative Facts
REALTORS® don’t just help you navigate the home buying and selling process.  They also are tireless advocates for homeowners, buyers and sellers in the legislative process.  Please see our newly presented website, Homeowner Legislative Facts, to learn about some of the many policy issues now being considered in Washington D.C. and Sacramento, which we monitor on your behalf.

 

Residential Energy Audit Program

The California REALTOR®’S Energy Audit Program (R.E.A.P.) provides up to a $250 rebate on a Home Energy Rating System (HERS) home energy audit conducted by a certified HERS rater. To qualify for the R.E.A.P., applicants must purchase a home between Oct. 1, 2013 and Dec. 31, 2014, conduct a HERS home energy audit of the home before the close of escrow (as part of the Energy Efficient Mortgage) or no later than 60 days after the close of escrow, and they must use a California REALTOR® in the transaction (referrals do not qualify). The program applies only to primary single family residences purchased in California. Learn more about R.E.A.P..

 

I read this article at: http://www.car.org/aboutus/forconsumers/#

Remember to follow our Blog at: https://therealestatebeat.wordpress.com/

Got Questions? – The Caton Team is here to help.  

Email Sabrina & Susan at: Info@TheCatonTeam.com

Call us at: 650-568-5522

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Connect with us professionally at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6588013&trk=tab_pro

Please enjoy my personal journey through homeownership at:

http://ajourneythroughhomeownership.wordpress.com

Thanks for reading – Sabrina

The Caton Team – Susan & Sabrina – A Family of Realtors

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices – Drysdale Properties

Sabrina BRE# 01413526 / Susan BRE #01238225 / Team BRE# 70000218/ Office BRE #01499008

Wire Fraud on the Rise in Real Estate

The newest tactic for online scams is wire transfer fraud.  These scammers are hacking into Realtor emails and lying in wait till it’s time to close escrow.  At that moment, they send a FAKE email that looks legit instructing clients to transfer their closing funds to another account.  The Realtors are unaware the email has been sent unless the client asks.  If the client just believes the email and changes their wire instructions – they have sent their hard earned money to the scammers and will never see those funds again.

It is incredibly frightening for myself, a professional Realtor to think that my email could be hacked and faked and money stolen.

If at any point an email seems fishy, pick up the phone and call your Realtor or call your Escrow Officer to double check the wire instructions.

Wire Instructions come directly from the Escrow Officer – not the Realtor.  Most Escrow Officers will call the client to get the information OR the wire instructions are completed at the time the loan documents are signed, in person with the client and Escrow Officer face to face.

This day in age, technology is King but nothing beats face to face interaction – especially for the largest purchase of your life.  No Realtor provides Wire Transfer Information.  Wire Instructions are part of the Escrow Process and will come directly from the Escrow Officers.

I try my best to keep my clients safe.  I hope no one experiences this!  For more information click on the link below from the National Association of Realtors.

I read this article at: http://www.realtormag.realtor.org/news-and-commentary/briefs/article/voice-for-real-estate?om_rid=AACmlZ&om_mid=_BXDP9rB9MJqMbl&om_ntype=BTNMonthly

Remember to follow our Blog at: https://therealestatebeat.wordpress.com/

Got Questions? – The Caton Team is here to help.  

Email Sabrina & Susan at: Info@TheCatonTeam.com

Call us at: 650-568-5522

Want Real Estate Info on the Go? Download our FREE Real Estate App:  http://thecatonteam.com/mobileapp

Visit our Website at:   http://thecatonteam.com/

VISIT OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE: http://instagram.com/thecatonteam

Visit us on Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sabrina-Susan-The-Caton-Team-Realtors/294970377834

Yelp us at: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-caton-team-realtors-sabrina-caton-and-susan-caton-redwood-city

Or Yelp me: http://www.yelp.com/user_details_thanx?userid=gpbsls-_RLpPiE9bv3Zygw

Connect with us professionally at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6588013&trk=tab_pro

Please enjoy my personal journey through homeownership at:

http://ajourneythroughhomeownership.wordpress.com

Thanks for reading – Sabrina

The Caton Team – Susan & Sabrina – A Family of Realtors

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices – Drysdale Properties

Sabrina BRE# 01413526 / Susan BRE #01238225 / Team BRE# 70000218/ Office BRE #01499008

 

 

The Numbers Are In: Yup, 2016 Is Off to a Good Start in Home Sales

My two cents – As the 1st quarter comes to an end – we sit on bated breath on what the future will bring in our Bay Area Real Estate Market.  I have to say – the drop in the stock market has had a huge impact on buyer confidence and cash flow.  I’ve even noticed a few price reductions on a select properties that haven’t sold in the first two weeks as expected.  Could it be the market is shifting?  Are sellers going to have to be a bit more realistic when pricing their homes?  Are buyers going to anti-up there offers as they did last year?  My biggest surprise has come from the rental market.  I’ve been tracking several properties and many have rented for UNDER their original asking price.  Which I have to say – is nice to see since our rental prices have skyrocketed and the word “affordability” is the forefront on concern.  

What will this mean for our market?  We’ll have to see.

I’d love to know your thoughts too!  Enjoy this article by Realtor.com

 

The Numbers Are In: Yup, 2016 Is Off to a Good Start in Home Sales

 

We may be on the verge of spring, but housing and economic reports work on a bit of a lag time. We’ve only just gotten the major data reports for January, and it’s giving us a clear-eyed view of how the real estate market is measuring up this year.

And yeah, things are looking good.

Job creation—arguably the most important factor in housing demand—is moving apace. January saw 151,000 jobs created. That level of employment growth is below 2015’s monthly average, but unemployment is now near 10-year lows and is in line with the current macro forecast from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). This level of employment growth should translate into the 3% growth in housing sales we are expecting for the year.

Speaking of sales, January’s existing home sales report did not disappoint. Even though sales are taking longer to close, due to the implementation of new disclosure and closing forms and procedures, the pace grew 0.4% in January from December. Granted, that’s not a lot, but analysts had been expecting a decline. And from January 2015 to January 2016, existing hom The increase in sales is resulting in continued tighter-than-tight supply—measured by NAR to be four months in January.  For you non-economists out there, that metric measures the number of months it would take to sell the current inventory of available homes, at the current pace. Got it? Six to seven months’ worth of homes on the market is considered normal; four months is cray-cray.

This is driving prices higher and encouraging consumers who hope to buy this year to get started as soon as possible.

January’s new home sales and new home construction remained consistent with the pace of activity of the last several months. Still, the level of new construction still represents solid year-over-year growth, especially in single-family homes. The most encouraging sign: The median price of new homes is finally declining, as a result of the fact that builders are offering more affordable homes.

Finally, the most timely readings we can pass on come from our own observations at realtor.com that confirm that demand is growing rapidly at the start of the year, resulting in an acceleration in inventory movement that we typically do not see until March or April.

OK, not everything is rainbows and unicorns. The biggest negative trend impacting potential demand relates to the January and February declines in stock values, which have taken a toll on consumer confidence. But, even that negative trend has a silver lining: Mortgage rates are now substantially lower. The average 30-year conforming rate has stabilized at under 3.7%, giving buyers almost 5% more buying power than they had at the end of 2015, and strengthening their ability to meet the debt-to-income ratio requirement for a loan.

Net-net, pent-up demand appears stronger than any weakness caused by the financial markets. And the lower rates are encouraging would-be buyers to act sooner rather than later. With this strong start, 2016 should indeed see growth, but the biggest constraint will be the tight supply.

 

I read this article at: http://www.realtor.com/news/trends/2016-off-to-good-start-home-sales/

Remember to follow our Blog at: https://therealestatebeat.wordpress.com/

Got Questions? – The Caton Team is here to help.  

Email Sabrina & Susan at: Info@TheCatonTeam.com

Call us at: 650-568-5522

Want Real Estate Info on the Go? Download our FREE Real Estate App:  http://thecatonteam.com/mobileapp

Visit our Website at:   http://thecatonteam.com/

VISIT OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE: http://instagram.com/thecatonteam

Visit us on Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sabrina-Susan-The-Caton-Team-Realtors/294970377834

Yelp us at: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-caton-team-realtors-sabrina-caton-and-susan-caton-redwood-city

Or Yelp me: http://www.yelp.com/user_details_thanx?userid=gpbsls-_RLpPiE9bv3Zygw

Connect with us professionally at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6588013&trk=tab_pro

Please enjoy my personal journey through homeownership at:

http://ajourneythroughhomeownership.wordpress.com

Thanks for reading – Sabrina

The Caton Team – Susan & Sabrina – A Family of Realtors

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices – Drysdale Properties

Sabrina BRE# 01413526 / Susan BRE #01238225 / Team BRE# 70000218/ Office BRE #01499008

 

Cooling Ahead for High-End San Francisco Real Estate

The hottest topic these days is affordability and where the market is going.  I am at the edge of my seat watching the real estate market and wisely advising my clients.  This article touches on the high end of San Francisco Real Estate sales.  The million dollar range is still widely active for the few listings available.  I too am curious where this market is going.  And open to hear your thoughts.  

 

Cooling ahead for high-end San Francisco real estate

Nina Hatvany has worked for 25 years in San Francisco as a real estate agent concentrating on the high end of the market. Today, as a result of a reeling stock market and concerns about global economic stability and growth, the conversation with well-heeled clients has turned decidedly more cautious.

“I have a number of buyers who are just more hesitant,” Hatvany told CNBC. “They look and they talk and then they start arguing with me about the slow IPO market and overvalued unicorns. I feel like I have to argue with them about how nice the house is.”

As technology stocks slide — the Nasdaq is down 15 percent this year — and private tech valuations suffer, real estate brokers say the feverish clamor for high-end homes in San Francisco has quieted.

“Somebody who might have pulled the trigger at $5 million last year now might be a bit more cautious,” said Josh McAdam, a top producing real estate agent with Pacific Union in San Francisco. “It’s not the same environment.”

McAdam is quick to note that demand remains strong for homes selling in the $1 million range. But the high-end residences in the City by the Bay, if they are to attract buyers, now need to boast all the right finishes, he says.

For example, McAdam said only one home in the tony neighborhood of Noe Valley last year sold for over $5 million. The year before, he says a handful of homes sold in that price range and a couple even above $5 million.

Hatvany confirms the same trends. In the second quarter of last year, her firm said, 18 homes sold in San Francisco for $6 million or higher. That number dropped to nine in the fourth quarter.

One question: Will the more cautious tone now defining the ultra-high-end of the market spread to other price points?

Christopher Palmer — an associate professor at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, who specializes in the housing markets — said the biggest threat to price appreciation is a downturn in tech because so much of the Bay Area economy is reliant on the sector.

“Tech stocks have taken a beating in the past few months, and every time there is a stock market correction, people start to wonder if the spigot of capital that has fueled so much Bay Area growth is about to be turned off,” Palmer said.

Analysts at Fitch raise another concern, arguing that home prices in San Francisco have “risen to a level unsupportable by area income.” Fitch reports that home prices set a record last year and are now more than 60 percent above the post-crisis low of 2012.

Fitch estimates that the city’s current home prices are 16 percent overvalued relative to economic fundamentals.

Still, though home prices may fall in San Francisco, Palmer said a wave of mortgage defaults or foreclosures is extremely unlikely.

He notes that the average jumbo mortgage borrower in San Francisco had a nearly 40 percent down payment, implying that homeowners enjoy a lot of flexibility to navigate price declines before being underwater.

Palmer also highlights a benefit of decreasing home prices: “To many prospective homebuyers in the Bay Area, this is great news,” he said. “There is a substantial amount of young families that would appreciate a slowdown in appreciation to be able to get into a home.”

I read this article at: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/02/12/cooling-ahead-for-high-end-san-francisco-real-estate.html

Remember to follow our Blog at: https://therealestatebeat.wordpress.com/

Got Questions? – The Caton Team is here to help.  

Email Sabrina & Susan at: Info@TheCatonTeam.com

Call us at: 650-568-5522

Want Real Estate Info on the Go? Download our FREE Real Estate App:  http://thecatonteam.com/mobileapp

Visit our Website at:   http://thecatonteam.com/

VISIT OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE: http://instagram.com/thecatonteam

Visit us on Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sabrina-Susan-The-Caton-Team-Realtors/294970377834

Yelp us at: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-caton-team-realtors-sabrina-caton-and-susan-caton-redwood-city

Or Yelp me: http://www.yelp.com/user_details_thanx?userid=gpbsls-_RLpPiE9bv3Zygw

Connect with us professionally at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6588013&trk=tab_pro

Please enjoy my personal journey through homeownership at:

http://ajourneythroughhomeownership.wordpress.com

Thanks for reading – Sabrina

The Caton Team – Susan & Sabrina – A Family of Realtors

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices – Drysdale Properties

Sabrina BRE# 01413526 / Susan BRE #01238225 / Team BRE# 70000218/ Office BRE #01499008

 

Why 2014 is a Good Year to Buy a Home

Why 2014 is a Good year to buy a home…

If you didn’t buy a home in 2013, you may be kicking yourself now. Home prices climbed nationally an average of 13.6 percent in the past 12 months, according to Tuesday’s release of the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index.

Don’t make the same mistake in 2014, suggests Benjamin Weinstock, real estate attorney and partner at the firm Ruskin Moscou Faltischek in Uniondale, N.Y.

Market forecasters predict that 2014 will be another year of gains for the real estate market, even though the rapid pace of sales in 2013 cooled off a bit at the end of the year. On Dec. 30, The National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index, based on contracts signed last month, rose 0.2 percent in November, below the 1 percent rise forecast.

Home prices are expected to rise about 5 percent next year, says Weinstock. Higher mortgage rates will dampen the pace of both sales and price gains, but not bring them to a halt. The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is expected to rise from 4.5 percent to 5 percent in the next year.

Even aside from expected price gains, buying a home is almost always a good investment in the long run, says Weinstock. Tax benefits are not to be overlooked.

“When one rents, at the end of the year he or she has a pile of 12 cancelled rent checks,” Weinstock says. “However, the homeowner has a pile of 12 cancelled mortgage checks that are nearly fully tax deductible in most cases.”

I read this article at:  http://www.cbsnews.com/news/why-2014-is-a-good-year-to-buy-a-home/

Remember to follow our Blog at: https://therealestatebeat.wordpress.com/

Got Questions? – The Caton Team is here to help.  

Email Sabrina & Susan at:  Info@TheCatonTeam.com

Call us at: 650-568-5522  Office:  650-365-9200

Want Real Estate Info on the Go?  Download our FREE Real Estate App:  http://thecatonteam.com/mobileapp

Visit our Website at:   http://thecatonteam.com/

Visit us on Facebook:   http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sabrina-Susan-The-Caton-Team-Realtors/294970377834

Yelp us at: http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-caton-team-realtors-sabrina-caton-and-susan-caton-redwood-city

Or Yelp me:  http://www.yelp.com/user_details_thanx?userid=gpbsls-_RLpPiE9bv3Zygw

Connect with us professionally at LinkedIn:  http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6588013&trk=tab_pro

Please enjoy my personal journey through homeownership at:

http://ajourneythroughhomeownership.wordpress.com

Thanks for reading – Sabrina

The Caton Team – Susan & Sabrina – A Family of Realtors

Sabrina BRE# 01413526 / Susan BRE #01238225 / Team BRE#70000218/ 01499008