Vandenberg AFB Homes, Author at Vandenberg AFB Homes

Buying REOs (Foreclosures) – You May Not Get Your Keys Until the Day AFTER it closes!

Of all the delays that REO buyers must endure, this tends to be the most difficult to swallow. After you’ve crossed the finish line, the loan funded, and you’ve waited the additional day for the transaction to record, NO KEYS! I've had this happen about 3 times, but it is beginning to be a trend on REO purchases that buyers cannot get the keys to their new home until the day AFTER the transaction closes. Banks centralize their escrow and title work on foreclosures, so you are almost always dealing with an out-of-town escrow company that is overburdened with work and often doesn't care about your individual transaction.

Mint Properties Joins the Santa Barbara Coastal Housing Partnership

Recently, Mint Properties joined the Coastal Housing Partnership, an organization set up to help deal with the issue of affordable housing in Santa Barbara County. I am proud to be a part of the work that the Coastal Housing Partnership performs in educating member employees on home buying and helping make the process more affordable overall. Mint Properties offers real estate services in the three valleys: Santa Ynez Valley, Lompoc Valley, and the Santa Maria Valley.

Where Have all the Houses Gone in Santa Maria – Orcutt?

When I searched the MLS for active properties this morning, I came up with 158 single family homes or condos for sale. 29 of those listings are short sales, and 35 are active REO listings. There are 234 contingent listings, and 222 of them are short sales. In the last 30 days, 131 homes have sold, with an average price of about $250,000, average price per square foot of $150, and averaging about 75 days on market. 28 of those sold homes were closed short sales, and 61 were REO (bank owned property) sales. Average days on market for short sales were about 120 days (this reflects the time period to obtain bank approval), and average days on market for REO listings was about 53 (this includes the time it takes to get the contract finalized by the bank).

Buying Central Coast REOs (Foreclosures) & Market Trends

July 14, 2009
Vandenberg AFB Homes
Central Coast Real Estate, Foreclosure / Bank Owned (REO) Info

Appraisal Fears. It appears that banks are beginning to fear appraisals. In the last two months, twice I had banks come back and make my buyer agree that they would stick with the offered purchase price even if the home did not appraise. Frankly, I think this stinks. Buyers are forced to bid up on popular properties, and now they must risk that if the appraisal doesn't come in, they will have to walk away from the property or pay the difference out of pocket. For buyers without a large pool of cash, this in effect will keep them from buying the property.

Mint Properties Offers New Central Coast Foreclosure Property Search

May 26, 2009
Vandenberg AFB Homes
Central Coast Real Estate, Foreclosure / Bank Owned (REO) Info

Mint Properties announced a new foreclosure search on my website: www.BuyCentralCoastForeclosures.com. Potential buyers can search for pre-foreclosure, auction, and bank owned properties. So, you can find information on properties throughout California once they have a Notice of Default (the first step in foreclosure) filed. Some of these properties are already listed as short sales on the local MLS. Others will only be listed if they complete the foreclsoure process and come back as bank owned properties.

Is Cash Still King in the Santa Maria CA Foreclosure Market?

May 24, 2009
Vandenberg AFB Homes
Foreclosure / Bank Owned (REO) Info, Santa Maria

Cash buyers are getting the best deals in this competitive market. I've found that the best deals tend to be bank owned homes vs. short sales, and cash does help in the ban owned bidding process. Banks tend to be more conservative about selling prices for short sales where they still have the borrower on the hook. So, I find that short sales tend to close right at current selling prices or slightly higher. Whereas, the goal with REOs is to move that asset off of the books quickly. So, you will see bigger price discounts on bank owned properties.

Morro Bay & Los Osos CA Bank Owned Market Update

For those looking for foreclosure bargains in the Los Osos and Morro Bay areas, you may be surprised to hear that the actual number of REOs (bank owned homes) in those cities has remained relatively low. Foreclosures tend to force the rest of the market down, and areas with fewer foreclosures have seen slower and more conservative price recessions than areas that were overloaded by foreclosures. Morro Bay and Los Osos have not had the foreclosure inventory that the beach communities in southern San Luis Obispo county have seen.

Another Twist to REO Contracts in the Santa Maria CA Market

May 17, 2009
Vandenberg AFB Homes
Foreclosure / Bank Owned (REO) Info, Santa Maria

I just received a counter offer back on a Bank of America property (formerly Countrywide) with a new twist that I haven't seen before in REO contracts. Countrywide officially became Bank of America Home Loans about two weeks ago. I've sold quite a few Countrywide REOs and was used to how they did things. However, it appears that the switch over to Bank of America has changed some things.

The Santa Maria CA Market is Tough on Buyers

Currently, there is intense competition among buyers in the Santa Maria market. If this is a buyer's market, it sure doesn't feel like it anymore. Indeed, with the banks calling almost all the shots in the under $300,000 market (short sales and foreclosures), it certainly feels like a sellers market.

Short Sale Seller Tip – Which Offer Should I Select?

Short sale sellers are routinely receiving multiple bids on their properties given the current limited inventory in many markets on the central coast. Inevitably, the question arises -- how do I choose which offer to present to the bank? Several factors are important and short sale sellers should reflect on them when deciding which offer to present to their lender: