Citrus Heights Real Estate Market Trends – California

News for Citrus Heights, CA - February 10th, 2012 3:17pm
December set the table for a very solid start to the 2012 real estate market in the 4-core counties of which comprises the Greater Sacramento Area. 2,790 new contracts in Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado and Yolo counties represents a 3% increase over November's number and a whopping 56% increase compared to December of 2010. 45% of these new contracts consisted of short-sale transactions. This signifies a continued trend among note holders to mitigate institutional losses and also allow distressed sellers to rebuild their financial lives more swiftly. Another bright spot appears in the price range of $400,000 and above. Although 182 sales represented a 10% dip from November, it still maintains a 26% increase over December 2010. Consider again, the strength of November and December open contracts combined to be optimistic about the first quarter of the New Year. "Supply side economics will focus your attention on a glaring issue," stated Tammi Bradley, Realtor, Keller Williams Real Estate. "Months of inventory, which is calculated by the rate of sale compared to standing inventory, compares as follows: Sacramento 2.0, Yolo 2.3, Placer 2.5 and El Dorado 3.4. This represents a continued downward trend with notable month-over-month and significant year-over-year decreases. Agents and Buyers alike continue to hope for more of the REO or Bank Owned listings to hit the market. Otherwise, they will be heavily dependent upon a steady stream of short-sale listings and successful negotiations with existing lien holders. Review of these metrics might suggest that housing prices will begin a slight rise." Other factors, such as consumer confidence, unemployment and interest rates will also have an impact. Many experts believe that we are bouncing around market bottom and could see a small but steady improvement in number of units sold and price point in 2012." For more information call Brett and Tammi Bradley at 916-960-9757... [ + Read Full Article ]

News for Citrus Heights, CA - January 26th, 2012 3:42pm
December set the table for a very solid start to the 2012 real estate market in the 4-core counties of which comprises the Greater Sacramento Area. 2,790 new contracts in Sacramento, Placer, ElDorado and Yolo counties represents a 3% increase over November's number and a whopping 56% increase compared to December of 2010. 45% of these new contracts consisted of short-sale transactions. This signifies a continued trend among note holders to mitigate institutional losses and also allow distressed sellers to rebuild their financial lives more swiftly.Low Mortgage Interest Rates. Another bright spot appears in the price range of $400,000 and above. Although 182 sales represented a 10% dip from November, it still maintains a 26% increase over December 2010. Consider again, the strength of November and December open contracts combined to be optimistic about the first quarter of the New Year. "Supply side economics will focus your attention on a glaring issue," stated Brett Bradley, Realtor, Keller Williams Real Estate. "Months of inventory, which is calculated by the rate of sale compared to standing inventory, compares as follows: Sacramento 2.0, Yolo 2.3, Placer 2.5 and ElDorado 3.4. This represents a continued downward trend with notable month-over-month and significant year-over-year decreases." "Agents and Buyers alike continue to hope for more of the REO or Bank Owned listings to hit the market. Otherwise, they will be heavily dependent upon a steady stream of short-sale listings and successful negotiations with existing lien holders. Review of these metrics might suggest that housing prices will begin a slight rise," continued Shea. "Other factors, such as consumer confidence, unemployment and interest rates will also have an impact. Many experts believe that we are bouncing around market bottom and could see a small but steady improvement in number of units sold and price point in 2012." For more information contact Brett and Tammi Bradley at 916-960-9757... [ + Read Full Article ]

News for Citrus Heights, CA - December 5th, 2011 3:03pm
REO closings were up 3% over last year and there is less than two months inventory on the shelves. With the REO average sales price hovering around $168,000, and price-per-square-foot at about $100, properties are being snapped up at a record pace. The average REO sales price has declined 11% from last September and the price per square foot has dropped 8%. Nearly 60% of all closings in August were distressed sales (33.8% REO and 26% Short Sales). The short sale average sales price of $215,000 was down 7% and average price per square foot of $110 was down 6% from a year ago. Conversely, while homes over $400,000 represented only 8.8% of the closings, they experienced an increased average sales price ($565,000) and increased average price per square foot ($172); up 5% and 3% respectively from a year ago. "There are a few factors contributing to this phenomenon," stated Larry Knapp, CEO, Lyon Real Estate. "Interest rates continue at historic lows; hovering around 4%. In addition, the greater Sacramento area is experiencing a 72% affordability index, which represents the percentage of households that can afford to purchase the median priced home; its highest level in decades," continued Knapp. "This combination of low prices, low interest rates and high affordability has created an unprecedented opportunity for people who want to buy a home and plan to stay in it for a long time."

News for Citrus Heights, CA - November 17th, 2011 3:00pm
Home Short Sales and REO's Continue to Drive the Market. We saw a respectable overall increase in activity during the month of October in the four-county areas of Placer, Sacramento, El Dorado and Nevada, compared to last year with closed sales up 14%. Once again the bulk of the activity was in the distressed sale category with Short Sales up 31% and REO's up 7% compared to the prior year. Sales over $400,000 represented fewer than 10% of overall sales and were down 5%. The average price for the four-county area was down 10% from last year, dropping from $241,000 to $217,000. Distressed sales (REO and Short Sales) represented 62% of closings for the month.Low Mortgage Interest Rates. "It is understandable why we are seeing a very active market in both REO and Short Sales when you consider that the average price per square foot of a traditional sale is around $170 while the average price per square foot for Short Sales ($111) and REO's ($97) are so much lower," said Tammi Bradley, Keller William Real Estate. "Even though these distressed properties often come with work required, the extraordinary values combined with record low mortgage rates continue to be the driving force in the market. For the best real estate experience call Brett and Tammi Bradley at 916-580-0381.