Buy Santa Maria Foreclosures Archives - Santa Maria CA Real Estate Blog & Information, REALTOR® Selling Santa Maria CA Homes

Santa Maria Foreclosure Alert: Are foreclosures frozen in Santa Maria, CA?

10/23/2010
Buyer Info, Santa Maria

I realize this is a controversial subject, but I do agree that freezing foreclosures or trying to turn back the clock only benefits a limited group of people. In California, most people who are losing their home to foreclosure are severely underwater and I find that once the foreclosure happens, a sense of relief soon follows that they can put the whole thing behind them.

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

07/15/2009
Buyer Info, Santa Maria

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).

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

05/24/2009
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.

Central Coast Investor Tip — 20% Down Payment Required

03/22/2009
Buyer Info, Central Coast Real Estate, Lompoc / Vandenberg Village, Santa Maria

For those looking to buy your first rental property, or pick up an extra one now that prices make sense again, be aware that lenders have rolled back the down payment requirements for investment property. Most lenders I polled recently say that a 20% down payment is required for an investment property. Many of us remember when lenders required a 30% down payment for investment property, and I wonder how long it will be until we are back to those days. Lenders slowly but surely increased the down payment requirement for investors during the housing boom and have slowly but surely increased that obstacle again.

The Santa Maria Real Estate Market is Hot!

03/21/2009
Buyer Info, Santa Maria, Seller Info

I know the media is saying that the real estate market is in the dumps. And I guess if you were hoping to get housing boom level prices for your home, it is. But if you are a Santa Maria or Ocutt home owner who needs to sell your home, you should know that the Santa Maria real estate market is hot! Why do I say that? Because homes that are priced in line with today's market that are not short sales, sell in less than a week. I feel as if this is a hidden secret of today's market place. Everyone believes that it is hard to sell your home right now, but even short sales that are well priced are receiving multile offers right now.

Buyer Tip — Use a Local Lender when Buying Central Coast Property

03/20/2009
Central Coast Real Estate

In the past couple of weeks, I have had two clients shop for mortgages online after securing a contract on a home. Both came back with inaccurate information. My advice to both was to use a local lender. It is natural and good practice to want to shop around. Online shopping is very convenient because you can do it at your convenience. But, I highly advise my clients to shop their loan with local lenders for several reasons inspired by experience:

What not to do when selling your Santa Maria CA home

03/17/2009
Santa Maria

Home sellers often ask what they can do to make their home sell quickly for the price they want. I believe that this is a great market for realistic sellers. Realistic meaning sellers who do not expect to get housing boom era pricing for their homes. There is actually a shortage of easy to buy homes on the market in the Santa Maria, Orcutt, and Lompoc markets. The market is clogged with short sales that stay stagnant. Homes and condos that are priced right are receiving multiple offers. That being said, time and time again I see sellers make critical mistakes when trying to sell their home.

Can I Buy A Home for $25,000 in Santa Maria, CA?

03/11/2009
Santa Maria

You would be surprised how many times I am asked this question with amounts varying from as little as $5000 to $50,000. And my answer to that is an easy no. I even had someone ask me about an $81,000 home in Foxenwood Estates! When I ask these potential buyers where they are getting this type of information, they point to the various foreclosure related websites. After sampling a few, for properties that are in pre-foreclosure (i.e. a Notice of Default has been filed) the amount of the payments that are in arrears, or the amount of the second loan owing on the property shows up as the list price, when in fact the home may not even be listed with a broker.