A Positive Spin on Real Estate

Dr. Steve Sjuggerud wrote an article recently with a much more positive spin on real estate, and which reflects what we're really seeing in the market. He showed graphs compiled by Global Financial of real estate data that literally goes back centuries.
The first proves that interest rates are the lowest they have been since 1900.
The last time mortgage rates were even close to this low in the past was just after World War II, and that was the precursor to the greatest postwar boom in housing prices – by far.
Mortgage rates bottomed in the mid-1950s, and house prices bottomed about the same time. Then the greatest boom in home prices in our lifetimes started.
Today we have record-low mortgage rates. And another thing in our favor is that homes are more affordable than ever. This information is based on the 40-year history of the Housing Affordability Index. "Affordability" takes three factors into account: home prices, your income, and mortgage rates.
Home prices have crashed, mortgage rates are at record lows, but incomes (nationwide) haven't fallen nearly as much… So homes are now more affordable than ever.
These graphs were an eye-opener for me. With all the negative press around, it was nice to read something positive on the subject.

Real Estate "Farming"

Second sale of the year on Friday night. I have been sending monthly mailers to the Old Orchard area for over thirty years, and the sellers of this Old Orchard townhome told me that they felt as if they already knew me, and that I would represent them when they decided to sell.
So many agents try "farming" a neighborhood, and give up after a few months of seeing no results. A good percentage of my business has always come from mailing a newsletter or card to a couple of my favorite areas in Sunnyvale. In the beginning, they were typed and copied monthly market updates, with a recipe and a contest included. Then as technology changed, they became more professional looking...computer generated, but still personal...following the market up as it went from $100,000 to a million dollars for single family Sunnyvale homes.
My monthly contact is now a large postcard that connects potential sellers with an online link to the current value of their individual homes. My personal opinions on the market are here in this blog.
All parties in the sale the other night(including the buyer's 83 year old mom) ended the evening with hugs and champagne. No wonder I don't retire...I'm having too much fun!

First Sale of the Year

I promised to follow up with the results of my New Year's listing. The house was listed on January 3rd, and there was almost no competition on the Realtors' tour. I actually ran out of brownies for the first time in my more than 30 years in the business! There was also a non-stop parade of potential buyers at both of the weekend Open Houses, and on the day we scheduled offer presentation, the seller had five good offers to choose from. The four bedroom house, located in westside Sunnyvale with Cupertino Schools, sold well over the listed price. The accepted offer was all cash and in as-is condition.
Even after that date, I am still receiving calls from interested buyers who missed bidding on the property.
I expect to see more inventory as we head into the Spring selling season, but for now, our real estate market is as hot as I predicted...perhaps more so.

2011 Should Be Spectacular

Unless the local news reports are exaggerating, the future for Silicon Valley may be a lot brighter than it has been in the last couple of years, and real estate may lead this change. A good test will be the listing that I'm putting on the market this Monday. If it sells in a week or two as others in that neighborhood have in the recent past, we'll know that things are looking up. I'm excited! Except for writing the MLS and advertising comments, all the prep work is completed. The keybox, basket of shoe covers, (to protect the new carpets) and flyer holder are ready to take to the house, open houses and tours are scheduled, and the video and photos are on the computer. Not too much left to do...just baking brownies for Realtors' tour.