Five Canyons Homes

To see my Real Estate Blogs click:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid89264647001?bctid=89312847001

Pending Home sales on the rise!

admin — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 18:06:00 +0000

Meena Just listed a home in Castro Valley

As per the Bay East Association of Realtors, Days on Market (DOM) for the Castro Valley area year-to-date is around 58. The median detached home price in Castro Valley for May was $455,000. As of the last day of May there were 129 active homes in Castro Valley. At current selling rates this means there is approximately 3 months of inventory in Castro Valley remaining.

As of June 17, 2010 there were 14 homes in Palomares Hills listed in a price range of $404,950 – $1,537,000. Four homes are townhouses and Duets and ten homes are Single Family Homes.

There are 3Single Family homes currently on the market in Five Canyons in the price range of $719,000 – $949,000.

98 SFR homes and 20 Condos / townhouses for sale in Castro Valley California. The price range for SFR is $214,000-$3,000,000 and for condos/ townhouse is $161,000-$649,000.

Castro Valley Statistics	Active	Pending	Sold	Months Supply
May 09	111	48	34	2.6
Jun 09	102	53	29	2.1
Jul 09	108	49	45	2.2
Aug 09	100	52	44	2.0
Sep 09	107	48	38	2.1
Oct 09	103	47	30	2.1
Nov 09	78	51	26	.16
Dec 09	75	41	42	1.6
Jan 10	77	35	23	1.8
Feb 10	95	41	26	2.3
Mar 10	124	49	36	3.0
Apr 10	105	61	31	2.3
May 10	129	49	49	2.6

Pending home sales have gone up for three consecutive months, because of the impact of the homebuyer tax credit and favorable housing conditions. First time home buyers were rushing to beat the initial deadline for the tax credit. They had to be in contract before April 30^th and close by June 30^th, 2010.

Pending home sales data is based on contracts and not closed sales that have a lag time of one to two months.

To see the video by the NAR chief economist, go to:

I specialize in Five Canyons and Palomares Hills. If you are looking for a list of Castro Valley Homes for sale, or sell your home in Castro Valley for a flat fee or full service and save thousands of dollars, please call Meena Gujral at 925-425-9491 or go to my website:

http://www.helpusellachievers.com

To see my Real Estate Blogs click:

Buying a fixer upper property

admin — Wed, 26 May 2010 18:44:46 +0000

Most buyers will demand for fixer-uppers which have an accelerating potential in the market during pleasant market situations. This happens during ideal circumstances in the real estate business. However, such situation can radically change during the counter wave of depreciation. In 2009 Investors slowly began to disappear after a considerable occurrence on the demand for foreclosure properties in most localities. This market slowly increased their discount to as much as 50 percent compared to its standard pricing than the last three years.

As per the California Association of Realtors, investors in this state alone have purchased properties that were considered distressed-sale houses at a roaring rate of 70 percent. Most of these properties were deprived of required fixtures and home appliances. However, this condition of the house would not discourage buyers from acquiring it at half the price. Purchasing these types of properties can mean more profit for buyers who will be the one to facilitate the retouches and possible renovations to improve the homes. This condition of the house can open doors of opportunity for buyers to make big money especially if they are well equipped in fixing up and reselling or renting out houses at a relatively higher rate than the original amount from which they have procured the houses. This is one of the most profitable business techniques most buyers can ever be into.

Houses priced at more than $500,000 will require a lot of effort to market before it can be made a good deal. This is because buyers would opt for fully remodeled homes if it is at this particular price range. They will aim for a house were they can move in as soon as possible and would not have to do the renovation and repair works.

However, there are always exceptions to the general rule. Fixer-uppers can be relatively attractive in certain situations. This occurs in high-demand markets that have a small number of listings. These fixers will tend to sell to buyers who will live in the house and do the fixing through their own effort. This buying strategy can efficiently enable them to save a lot of money than going for a fully remodeled one. Such purchasing behavior permits them to move into the community just by utilizing a comparably lower cost than the other options.

Marketers of fixers in this particular community must do every thing it takes to make the houses much presentable than other houses. This can be accomplished through cleaning and elimination of clutter. Every corner of the house must be provided with ample attention, be it in the interior or exterior. Several home buyers cannot see the potentials of a certain house. It usually takes some amount of investment to be employed to be able to realize the properties’ best benefits.

Usual renovation and improvement efforts can actually be transformed into monetary gain. Repainting, updating of home fixtures, rearranging the appliances, dealing with dry rot and the like are quite simple but can be realized in monetary value if done efficiently. If purchased at the peak of the market, it may not be possible to make a quick profit by fixing and trying to sell immediately. It may make sense to hold it, rent it out and wait for the prices to go up more before selling.

For more information about buying or selling a home in Five Canyons, Castro Valley, Palomares Hills or the East Bay, visit http://www.helpusellachievers.com or call Meena at 925-425-9491.

To see my other Real Estate Blogs click:

Tips in Buying a Short Sale Property

admin — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 03:27:22 +0000

If you have not signed up to receive a free list of homes for sale in Five Canyons yet, you can do that here: Click Here For A List of Homes for Sale.

The basics in buying a house are a bit too simple for some people. Most of the time, buyers are expectant of closing a real property deal with the goal of hoarding much benefits and profit at their end. Some home buyers may even go overboard in offering prices which can be much below the needed funds by sellers and the actual value of the real property.

One of the best ways to avoid such a situation and to build efficient equity is purchasing houses through short sales. Short sale in its natural essence is defined as the real estate process where the financing institution permits the acceptance of an amount that is lesser than the loaned amount by the house’s owner.

Buying houses through short sales is not that difficult even for first time buyers. Here are some of the tips that could be of help to house hunters.

First things first. Make sure that you find a realtor whom you can trust and confidently work with to be able to successfully close a good deal. See to it that he or she has an impressive track record and a systematic experience in selling short sale houses. A seasoned real estate agent has the propensity and prowess to help you enter into a great deal. She is completely acquainted with the complete process as well as the right questions to ask from the listing agent and short sale negotiator.

Find out and know the perfect time to buy a short sale house. Be certain that you immediately process all necessary receptive contract contingencies such as financing and home inspections right after you receive the short-sale letter of acceptance from the lender.

Make sure that you have worked out your pre-approval letter or proof of funds along with the offer. It is expected that lenders will require this documents early in the process. The strength of your letter can determine the lenders impression. Give the lender ample information data base on all your private documentations such as proof of income and employment details. The processing time will be much swifter as soon as your offer gets accepted.

Do your own research on the short sale process. You might find the process a little bit confusing if you don’t do your own study about it. It is a lot different from normal home seller and buyer transaction. The negotiation is entirely at the mercy of the mortgage lender. They have a tendency to aspire for a viable market value to possibly recover the value of the loan. You’ll most likely find it hard to persuade the lender to shift on the price and accept a lower offer.

Be patient at all times. This must be the most important virtue you have to employ when buying a short sale. Expect a good deal of waiting time before closing a possible transaction due to a lot of negotiations that goes along with it. A typical home purchase requires thirty to forty five days before it can be closed while it takes several months before you can clear all the documents and paper works to the lender’s approval in a short sale.

If you are looking to for a short sale or foreclosure property or need to sell your home as a short sale, I can help you. I have a 100% success rate in closing all my short sales. Please call Meena Gujral for a list of short-sale properties that match your needs: 510-279-9580 or email meena.gujral@gmail.com.

Listings in Five Canyons, Castro Valley, California

admin — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 03:53:25 +0000

The last time I checked for listings in Five Canyons which was about a week ago, there were no listings showing up under “Active” status. Today (Sunday) I was driving through Five Canyons and I noticed 6 open house signs. When I got back to my computer, I checked the MLS and sure enough there were 6 properties showing Active between the price range of $590,000- $789,000. All 6 are Single Family Residences and three of these properties are short sales. By the way, if you have not signed up to receive a free list of homes for sale in Five Canyons yet, you can do that here: List of Homes for Sale.

In Palomares Hill, Castro Valley there are three active single family homes on the market in the range of $685,000-$775,000 and they are all regular listings.

Spring and sumeer are usually the time most sellers want to put their homes on the market and looking at the sudden surge in listings today, that certainly proves the point.

If you are looking to sell a home in Five Canyons or Palomares Hills, please call me at 510-279-9580. I have sold many homes in both these neighborhoods. I would be happy to discuss how we can sell your home for a low set fee thereby saving you thousands of dollars. If you want me to send you listings of all the homes for sale in in Five Canyons or Palomares Hills, Castro Valley. I can set you up for automatica e-mails of listings as soon as they come on the market.

To see my other Real Estate Blogs click:

Meena’s Pleasanton Blog

New Home Buyer Tax credit signed today

admin — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 23:16:49 +0000

News from the California Association of Realtors:

Today Gov. Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill 183, the Homebuyer Tax Credit legislation, into law. His actions today are the result of our efforts in Sacramento over the last several weeks as members and our team in the capital worked for the bill’s passage before it landed on the governor’s desk.

AB 183 will provide $200 million for home buyer tax credits, allocating $100 million for qualified first-time home buyers of existing homes and $100 million for purchasers of new, or previously unoccupied, homes. The eligible taxpayer who purchases a qualified personal residence on and after May 1, 2010, and on or before Dec. 31, 2010, or who purchases a qualified principal residence on and after Dec. 31, 2010, and before Aug. 1, 2011, pursuant to an enforceable contract executed on or before Dec. 31, 2010, will be able to take the allowed tax credit. The credit is equal to the lesser of 5 percent of the purchase price or $10,000, in equal installments over three consecutive years. Under AB 183, purchasers will be required to live in the home for at least two years or forfeit the credit (i.e., repay it to the state).

The positive impact of the federal home buyer tax credit is clear. Nearly 40 percent of first-time home buyers said they would not have purchased a home if the federal tax credit for first-time home buyers was not offered, according to C.A.R. research conducted last year.

The state’s previous home buyer tax credit program was so successful that it ran out of tax credits by the end of June 2009, eight months before it was set to expire and just as housing markets appeared to be turning a corner. Unlike last year’s legislation, AB 183 adds a tax credit for the purchase of an existing home by a first-time home buyer.

AB 183 will significantly contribute to the effort to stimulate jobs-creation within California’s housing market by helping to incentivize first-time home buyers to purchase homes that have been abandoned, foreclosed upon and returned to the lender, or have been sitting on the market for extended periods of time. It is these homes that will require substantial rehabilitation by the new owners, which will in turn generate a tremendous increase in jobs and accessory purchases connected to home improvement activities.

If I can help answer any questions you can reach me at 510-279-9580 or go to my website at: http://www.helpusellachievers.com

Meena’s Pleasanton Blog

Help-U-Sell leads way with set fee model

admin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:12:27 +0000

Traditional real estate brokers are beginning to see what Help-U-Sell® brokers have known since 1976, selling consumers prefer set fee real estate services and a menu of services.

Trend toward fee-based services

In an online survey by Inman Publishing taken by 505 respondents between Feb. 5 and March 5, 2010, “more than half of respondents (57.8 percent) believe that real estate services will increasingly be fee-based in the next 10 years, moving away from the traditional commission structure,” which typically runs between 6 and 7 percent of the sales price of a home.

“Fees will increasingly be based on the consumer’s selection of services by the year 2010,” said 40.4 percent of respondents. Another 17.4 percent said “that brokers will increasingly charge a flat fee for real estate services.”

Buyer’s agent compensation trends

In the Inman survey, 44.6 percent of respondents said they thought the structure of buyer’s agent compensation will be unchanged for the next 10 years, and “that buyer’s agents will continue to be paid through the cooperative commission amount offered by the listing brokerage.”

Buyers negotiating the compensation for buyer’s agent services are a trend projected by 22.8 percent of respondents, while 16.4 percent thought that in the next 10 years “buyer’s agents will be compensated for the specific duties performed and/or hours worked.”

Help-U-Sell® Beliefs

“For more than 35 years, Help-U-Sell® has believed that the traditional 6 percent commission is an outdated practice and has no correlation to the cost of performing a real estate transaction,” said John Powell, Help-U-Sell® Chief Operating Officer.

“Our goal is to provide a fair price for the cost of services rendered, much like any other professional service that consumers pay for. Since the cost of doing business varies throughout the country, the set-fee offered for our services also varies, depending on the market. What doesn’t change is the scope of services we provide. We perform all the same services as traditional real estate companies, and, often times, more.”

For more information about Help-U-Sell® Real Estate services or to sell your home in Five Canyons, Castro Valley, Palomares Hills or the East Bay for a set fee, visit http://www.helpusellachievers.com or call Meena at 510-279-9580.

To see my other Real Estate Blogs click:

http://www.helpusellachievers.com

Five Canyons Homes- Market Conditions

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 17:40:18 +0000

As per the Bay East Association of Realtors, Days on Market (DOM) for the Castro Valley area year-to-date is around 71. The median attached home price in Castro Valley for February was $507,500. As of the last day of February there were 95 active homes in Castro Valley. At current selling rates this means there is approximately 2 months of inventory in Castro Valley remaining.

As of March 17, 2010 there were 4 homes in Palomares Hills listed in a price range of $595,000-$775,950. There are no homes currently on the market in Five Canyons.

98 SFR homes and 20 Condos / townhouses for sale in Castro Valley California. The price range for SFR is $214,000-$3,000,000 and for condos/ townhouse is $161,000-$649,000.

Castro Valley Statistics	Active	Pending	Sold	Months Supply
Feb 09	151	30	25	5.2
Mar 09	137	50	25	3.9
Apr 09	125	46	31	3.0
May 09	111	48	34	2.6
Jun 09	102	53	29	2.1
Jul 09	108	49	45	2.2
Aug 09	100	52	44	2.0
Sep 09	107	48	38	2.1
Oct 09	103	47	30	2.1
Nov 09	78	51	26	.16
Dec 09	75	41	42	1.6
Jan 10	77	35	23	1.8
Feb 10	95	41	26	2.3

Here is an article I read in the Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal

Nabbing a bargain-basement mortgage before rates rise
The Federal Reserve has been purchasing mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac since early last year. The purchase program has helped maintain low interest rates for borrowers. As planned, the Fed this week announced it will stop purchasing these securities at the end of this month. Many analysts anticipate this will result in a slight rise in rates by year’s end.

MAKING SENSE OF THE STORY FOR CONSUMERS

Interest rates have hovered at or near historic lows for much of the past 18 months, resulting in lower payments for many borrowers. With the Fed discontinuing its purchase program, some analysts believe a rise in interest rates could range from 0.25 percent to as much as 1 percent by the end of 2010.
The federal tax credit for home buyers also is scheduled to end April 30. The tax credit combined with the expectation interest rates will increase has created a sense of urgency for many home buyers. In fact, 23 percent of California home buyers purchased a home in 2009 due to the perception that interest rates will rise and they would be priced out of the market, according to C.A.R.’s 2009 Survey of California Home Buyers.
Rising interest rates will have an effect on home buyers. For example, a qualified couple with a combined pretax income of $100,000 per year and debt obligations (excluding mortgage) of $500 who receive a mortgage rate of 5 percent could qualify for a loan of up to $590,000, assuming a 20 percent down payment. If the interest rate were to rise to 6 percent, as analysts at Barclays Capital predict, the same couple could only qualify for a mortgage of $540,000.

To see my other Real Estate Blogs click: