In the past, HUD Homes have had a bad vibe associated with them. Nowadays, there are homes that are in pretty good shape, some even newer that are for sale and yes, there are still some beaters that need TLC.

Anyone can search for HUD Homes that are for sale by going to the HUD Home Store website. On the home page, you can select the state, county, city and other criteria that you’re interested in. If there are homes available in your area, a list will appear with basic information on the home.

There is certain protocol that needs to be followed to purchase a HUD home. First, you need to work with a real estate broker that is APPROVED to bid on HUD Homes. By the way, I happen to be one of those brokers. Next, you want to make sure you are working with a lender who is well versed in HUD homes and has the patients for it as they can be a bit tricky and very time consuming. Following is a list of things that are good to know:

• One of the good things about HUD Homes is that the list price is also the appraised price. So you know that if a HUD Home has a price of $250,000 it was recently appraised by the HUD Appraiser at that amount.
• If you bid more than the asking price, you will have to bring in the difference in CASH. So if the home is $250,000 and you offer $260,000, you will have to have $10,000 in cash to make up the difference plus your closing costs.
• When you want to make an offer on a HUD Home, you have to use an approved broker (ahem) to submit a bid on your behalf.
• The first 10 days that a property is on the market, HUD will review all bids on the “bid submission deadline”. If there are no acceptable bids, then they will review bids daily until one is approved. The first 30 days they will accept bids from owner occupants, non-profits and government agencies. After that, it’s fair game to anyone.
• If you’re bid is accepted, you only have 3 days to get the original signed contract (on HUD forms) and your earnest money deposit in the form a cashiers check or money made payable to both you or HUD for $1000.
• HUD will usually select their preferred title and escrow. You can choose your own, but may be subject to hire fees. The fees may be well worth it because escrow companies that are dedicated to HUD can be overwhelmed and cause many delays.
• Once you get past the initial bidding process and are accepted and submit the paperwork, everything else is pretty standard stuff.

Here is an example of a HUD Home for sale in San Juan Capistrano, CA as of the date of this post.

Price $320,000

Bedrooms: 2 Baths 1.5

It’s been on the market 5 days, so they will review any bids received between the list date and day 10 in five more days.

If no bids are accepted at that time, any new bids will be reviewed daily.

If you’d like more information on HUD Homes or any other properties for sale in Orange County, you can call 714-396-2819.

How are things looking in Talega of San Clemente?

First lets take a quick look at the 2011 vs. 2012 sold properties. Looking at these graphs that represent the breakdown of type of sale for the year, the percentage change is slight in each category, although 2012 had 38 more homes sold. This isn’t really anything to write home about, although it is encouraging to see the 4% decrease in bank owned properties.

However, when you look at the dramatic change in how long it took for a home to sell in 2011 vs now, that’s some exciting news. Take a look at the graph below.

This decrease in days on market coupled with the amount of homes available for sale are huge indicators of a shift in the market place. And we have definitely been experiencing this shift in Talega and throughout San Clemente for several months.  Here’s a snap shot comparing homes for sale in April since 2011.

The 22 homes for sale in Talega as of April 10th represent a 1 month supply of inventory. This means we are in a STRONG sellers market. If no new homes came on the market, it would take about a month to sell these 22 homes.  At a national level, there is about 4.5 months of inventory available according to the National Association of Realtors.

This data means different things to different people. Basic economics tells us that a shortage of supply will cause an increase in price and an overage of supply will cause a decrease in price. This also applies to real estate. Right now there are many buyers trying to buy homes and there just aren’t enough homes available so the result has been bidding wars and an increase in prices.

For homeowners who may have been waiting to sell in order to avoid a short sale, timing might be right for you to make the move now. As summer approaches, more homes typically come on the market, which gives buyers more options and less pressure to get into a bidding war.

For buyers, if you find the home you want, give some serious thought to upping your offer IF you’re countered. A few months from now, a similar house could be going for significantly more. Always be prepared ahead of time so you feel comfortable when making decisions about a house purchase.

Experience has shown that timing is everything. Only you can choose what timing is best for you.

Maybe you’re one of the luck ones who has no problem rolling up your sleeves and tackling the chores.  For those of you who need a little nudge like me, this Spring Cleaning Checklist should help get you started on the right track.

Let me know if there’s anything you think should be added to the list.

Happy cleaning!

The challenge many buyers who want to get in to the game are having is that none of the three communities above are FHA or VA approved. Verano’s FHA just expired last month. If you’re looking for VA, Trinidad is the complex for you.  With interest rates continuing to be at all time lows, lenders are offering creative solutions to those with low down payments to purchase in areas such as these without FHA or VA. Of course, income and credit need to be strong. If you need a recommendation for a lender, I know several who’d be happy to help.

There are currently only 29 homes for sale in Talega, and 23 are SINGLE FAMILY HOMES. There are 6 CONDOS for sale with 1 being a short sale and 1 bank owned.  This is great for sellers, still an opportunity for buyers with low interest rates and great for the real estate market in general.

I’m here to answer any questions you have on residential real estate. Thinking of putting your home on the market? Interested in buying before rates go up? Just want general real estate info? No problem, I can help.

Short sales take time. Do you have what it takes to wait it out?

The term “short” does not refer to the amount of time it takes, but the fact that the seller is asking the bank to accept a “short” payment as a payment in full. So if the seller owes $500,000 on the property, but the value has decreased to $375,000, they are asking the bank to take a loss of $125,000 plus other fees like Realtor commissions, closing costs, etc.

If there is more than one bank involved, that can complicated things further. The bank that holds the 1st note on the property may agree to accept a certain amount as a short pay and offer a small amount to the 2nd note holder. The short sale can not go through without approval from both banks. This can delay a closing even further.

Although there have been a slew of short sales for the last several years, there is still not a uniform process in which they are handled. Each bank has its own procedures and they are all different from the next. There are some banks that have rolled out programs to streamline the process, and the government has implemented the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives (HAFA) short sale program, to help regulate and speed up how short sales are handled. So they are making some efforts to reduce the time it takes to close a short sale transaction, but they can still take a long time.

One of the challenges short sale properties have, besides all of the above, is finding a buyer who is willing to wait it out. There’s no telling if it will take 90 days or six months to get the approvals needs to move forward with escrow.  So if you are the type who likes instant gratification, a short sale property is not going to be an ideal choice for you, stick with a standard sale or even a bank owned.

Are you ready to start your home search? Call Adrienne today to get the help you need to find the right home for you. 714-396-2819

Just want more info? Email Adrienne with your questions.

Here is a snap shot of the breakdown of closed sales in Talega during 2011. Of the 224 homes sold, 107 were standard sales, 81 were short sales and 36 were bank owned.

Here is what has happened in Talega year to date as of April 6, 2012. Of the 31 homes sold, 26 were standard sales, 18 were short sales and 12 were bank owned.

As for the active market, standard sales are making a come back! There are 31 homes for sale as of today and 68% of them are standard sales. Short sales make up 19% and bank owned is at 13%.

In my opinion, the real estate market over all, is turning the corner. The available inventory in San Clemente,  Orange County and nationwide has dropped considerably, while the amount of homes going under contract is increasing. This is a move in the right direction to see some recovery in the market. By recovery, I mean working toward a balance in the housing supply and demand. We are not likely to see this balance impact home prices in an upward motion until late 2013 and it will be in modest increments when it does happen.

As an owner of 15 properties, I’m excited to see these trends! Real estate is a huge part of my present and future and it could be a huge part of yours too.

Who do you know who has been wanting to buy real estate as an investment but doesn’t know where to start?

Who do you know who is worried about their retirement and how they will support themselves in the future?

Who do you know who would like someone else to pay their mortgage?

Who do you know who is fearful to invest in the stock market but want to invest in something?

Whoever came to mind when you saw the above questions would appreciate you helping them find the answers to their questions. 

Take a few minutes to help your friends, family or yourself.  Here’s how:

• Forward them a link to this post
• Share this link on Facebook
• Tell them to call 714-396-2819 for help in these areas
• Give them my email if they just want some info but aren’t ready to talk – adrienne@adriennemarkes.com

Here is a short video recap of what took place in the San Clemente real estate market for November 2011 and what is currently active now.

Don’t want to watch, that’s ok, here is the scoop below:

SOLD
66 San Clemente homes sold in November 2011 (51 SFR, 15 condo)

DOWN 22% from November 2010

41% of homes sold were distressed (11 REO, 16 short sale)

Median sales price $562,500 Median days on market 96

Average list to sales price is at 97%

Active

304 active homes for sale (229 are SFR)

Median list price is at $715,000 for SFR

Distressed properties make up 29% of the homes for sale

Talega

70 homes for sale
48.5% are distressed

Orange County

8888 homes for sale

37.6% are distressed properties

If you’ve been considering putting your home on the market, make the call today for a private consultation to discuss the best way to position your home for a quick sale. 714-396-2819

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Here are some graphs showing the current market conditions in San Clemente.

90-day stats for Single Family properties in SAN CLEMENTE, CA as of May 17, 2013
Median List Price:	$962,840	Average List Price:	$1,193,361
Total Inventory:	220	Price per Square Foot:	$362
Average Home Size:	2,557	Median Lot Size:	7,323
Average # Beds:	3.82	Average # Baths:	2.89
Homes Absorbed:	21	Newly Listed:	23
Days on Market:	111	Average Age:	26

90-day stats for Condo properties in SAN CLEMENTE, CA as of May 17, 2013
Median List Price:	$723,500	Average List Price:	$808,144
Total Inventory:	82	Price per Square Foot:	$363
Average Home Size:	1,748	Median Lot Size:	n/a
Average # Beds:	2.66	Average # Baths:	2.19
Homes Absorbed:	7	Newly Listed:	7
Days on Market:	99	Average Age:	31

For a private consultation to sell or purchase real estate email me or call 714-396-2819.

SOLD
71 San Clemente homes sold in September 2011 (60 SFR, 11 condo)

UP 9.23% from September 2010

38% of homes sold were distressed (4 REO, 23 short sale)

Median sales price $625,000 Median days on market 89

Average list to sales price is at 96%

Active

360 active homes for sale (263 are SFR)

Median list price is at $725,000 for SFR

Distressed properties make up 23% of the homes for sale

Orange County

10153 homes for sale

35% are distressed properties

So we’ve seen a increase in the homes sold since August and a decrease in the days on market. The average list to sales price remains the same at 96% and we are still in a strong buyers market. If you are thinking about selling and are worried about the holidays approaching, there is a positive I want to point out. The buyers that are out looking during the holidays are serious and ready to buy. So even though less people may be coming to see your home, they will be ready to make an offer when they find the right home.

Check back in next month to get the scoop on October numbers.

Call 714-396-2819 for the professional real estate services of Adrienne Markes and get your questions answered.

Remember there is help available for people undergoing hardships who would like to stay in their home or avoid foreclosure.

Sign up here for free market stats that come straight to your email.

If  you would like a showing appointment for this property or any other in San Clemente call Adrienne at 714-396-2819.

Listing courtesy of Lisa Henderson, Altera Real Estate