Tahoe Donner Real Estate Market Update – May 2011
June 6, 2011
Home for Sale in Tahoe Donner
We are seeing an increase in the number of homes listed in Tahoe Donner. At the end of April there were 92 homes listed and there are now 119 homes listed in Tahoe Donner. We will likely continue to see inventory go up over the next few months during the busy selling season this summer.
Tahoe Donner Real Estate Market Update – April 2011
May 12, 2011
Tahoe Donner Home for Sale
The Tahoe Donner Real Estate Market is looking good! 12 homes sold last month. This makes a total of 57 Tahoe Donner home sales for 2011.
We are continuing to see more and more short sales and foreclosures on the market. 1 of the homes that sold last month was short sales and 3 were REOs. The rest were standard sales (8). The lowest home sale price last month was $230K and the highest home sale price was $850K. The average sales price was $509, 558. The average days on market was 86 days.
92 single family homes are now listed in Tahoe Donner. 14 of these are short sales and 1 is an REO. Inventory is slowly going back up as the warmer weather is coming and home owners are deciding to sell again. There are currently 16 homes in escrow in Tahoe Donner. The absorption rate is around 17% and there is about 6 months supply of inventory remaining in Tahoe Donner. Click on the link for current homes for sale in Tahoe Donner.
Lake Tahoe & Truckee April 2011 Real Estate Sales Stats
May 12, 2011
There were 63 single family homes sales recorded in the Tahoe Sierra Multiple Listing Service for last month (April 2011). This makes a total of 247 homes sales this year!
Home sales in the $499K and under saw the most activity last month. There were 21 homes that sold for between $300K-$499K and 20 that sold for under $299K. 8 homes sold for $500K-$699K. 8 homes sold for over $1 million! The most expensive sold for $3,350,000 in Norden, CA. 9 of the home sales last month were short sales and 18 were REOs.
This information was taken from our local multiple listing service and is for the dates of April 1-30, 2011. Click on the image below for an enlarged version of the chart and more info.
Shadow Inventory
May 9, 2011
The KCM Blog recently posted a blog entitled: Shedding a Little Light on Shadow Inventory. The article states that distressed properties are expected to increase. The article also talks about the affect on neighboring properties.
Last week, we posted a blog titled: The Impact of Distressed Properties on Neighboring Values. In the article, we said there would be more distressed properties coming to market in the next six months and that these properties would put added downward pressure on prices of other homes in the area. Some questioned our assumption that foreclosures were about to increase and others questioned our assertion that they would have a negative impact on values. We want to qualify both of our statements today.
Distressed properties are about to increase
We have been in the ‘eye of the storm’ regarding the shadow inventory of foreclosure properties for the last several months. Foreclosures have been delayed by court systems mandating that the banks have their paperwork in order. Just last week, Fannie Mae addressed this issue in a report:
“Our foreclosure rates remain high. However, foreclosure levels were lower than what they otherwise would have been in the first quarter of 2011 due to the delays caused by servicer foreclosure process deficiencies and the resulting foreclosure pause.”
In their First Quarter 2011 Financial Results Supplement, Freddie Mac, also addressed this issue last week:
“We expect the pace of our REO acquisitions to increase in the remainder of 2011, in part due to the resumption of foreclosure activity by servicers, as well as the transition of many seriously delinquent loans to REO.”
More foreclosures will be coming to the market throughout 2011.
Distressed properties impact prices of surrounding properties
Clear Capital discussed this point in their May 2011 Market Report. In the report they used two graphs to emphasize the connection. In the first graph, they charted the national saturation rate of foreclosures (REOs) from 2008 until the present.
In the second graph they charted national home prices during the same time period.
We can see that as the saturation rate of foreclosures increase, prices decrease.
Bottom Line
More foreclosures will be coming to market and they will have an impact on values. How will your neighborhood be affected? Sit down with a local real estate expert to find out.
To read the entire article click here.
Short Sale or Foreclosure?
May 4, 2011
Decision?
The KCM Blog recently wrote the following article about which is better: a short sale or a foreclosure. Click here to view source.
Is a Short Sale or a Foreclosure My Best Option?
We get asked this question quite often. In a rapidly changing market, it is difficult to give absolute answers. Much depends on your family’s personal situation. However, if you realize that you can no longer make the payments, you may have to decide between doing a short sale or letting the home go to foreclosure. Here are three things you may wish to consider:
1.) Impact on Your Future Ability to Get a Mortgage
There are many different lending institutions, each with their own requirements when it comes to your ability to obtain a mortgage in the future. However, a common trend is to be much more lenient with someone working through a short sale rather than letting the house go to foreclosure. As an example, the Fannie Mae site, Know Your Options explains you:
May be able to get a Fannie Mae mortgage to purchase a home sooner (in as little as 2 years) than if you went through foreclosure (at least 7 years)
You can get further information here. However, in a rapidly changing environment, make sure you get the latest information available from the actual lending institutions mentioned.
2.) Impact on Your Credit Score
There has been much dialogue on this issue. The question is whether or not a foreclosure will have a more severe impact on your credit score than a short sale. A recent FICO study sheds needed light on this question. Here is a chart from that report.
The first chart shows the impact on the score for each stage of delinquency, and the second shows how long it takes the score to fully “recover” after the fact.
We can see that there is very little difference in impact on your credit score whether you choose a short sale or a foreclosure.
3.) Impact on Your Family during the Move
Usually a family asking this question is already experiencing major financial difficulties. This may be putting immense pressure on both parents and the children. If you allow your home to go to foreclosure, you move and leave it vacant or you stay waiting for an official to knock on your door demanding you move. That added burden can cause even more stress for a family.
In the short sale process, you work with the bank and pre-determine the day you will move. The new purchasers usually move in the same day. Your family moves with a plan and you don’t leave the neighborhood with a vacant house to deal with. There is a level of dignity in this type of move that does not always take place in a foreclosure situation.
Bottom Line
For several reasons, a short sale may be the better option for your family. It is best to get professional advice if faced with this decision.
