Spectacular settings garner more money/sf in la quinta
It is HOT here in the Palm Springs area..afterall, we are a desert! Normally our summer season slows down quite a bit from high season, and this summer DID slow down. However, it has been a steady stream of sales for established Realtors. I just sold another Listing and am actively seeking new Listings here in our desert cities so that I may expose them to my supurb marketing system! July saw our 7th consecutive month of price increases for our Riverside County homes (CDAR housing report). Absolutely true, but my Sellers have to be careful not to OVER price their property. Whether you own Land, an Equestrian Ranch, or a Residential property, price it appropriately to SELL!
Your Realtor should advise you of a price/sf that is based on solid comparables and recent sales. After that number is established, you and your Realtor must review carefully y our own personal situation. Do you need to get out now? Are you ok with taking a chance that you will get more money in the high season? Are there family issues? Share all the pertinent information with your Realtor and your La Quinta property will SELL! Who wants to see a FOR SALE sign stuck in the ground if not to actually SELL their property????
My Sales over the past 3 weeks..
1. Lavender Way, Canyon Crest in central Palm Desert. I am representing the Seller and we listed at $413,500..a little ahead of the market. We received a full price cash offer after a couple months of extensive marketing/showings.
2. The Hideaway Golf Club; La Quinta. I brought my Canadian buyers to this lovely home with startling golf course, to Santa Rosa mountain views. $2,795,000. Our local high end golf clubs have been gaining traction over the past 6 months and I expect the price/sf to see a slow, stead rise throughout the winter season.
3. PGA West, Norman course; La Quinta. I am representing the Sellers at $1,349,000. Again..just ahead of the market based on recent comparables, but a very patient Seller. Listed at approx. 100 days, we got our number.
If you are looking to Buy or sell your home in La Quinta, Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells or the more easterly areas of our Valley, give me a call at 760-285-3578.
More
The Palm Springs & La Quinta Valley housing market is recovering..
I like to keep up with my local Palm Springs Valley statistics too, but I found this chart very interesting..it actually looks at the number of active Brokers. We are at the lowest rate since 2007! I was around in the boom when every other person you met was a Realtor. I think many people were not doing Real Estate as a career, but rather a “part time” supplement to their income..flipping or representing family/friends.
Take a look at these statistics..
In my local market here in the Palm Springs Valley, even vacant land is beginning to generate calls, and that’s something I haven’t had happen in almost 3 years! My ranch/small farm listings in the East Valley are being toured and I expect I will receive offers this season. Land is always the last thing to turn around in a housing crash, so land sales are very indicative of builder and investor confidence returning.
More
In July, contracts to buy previously owned homes rose to their highest level in more than two years… suggesting that the Housing Market Recovery is Making Headway.
The Pending Home Sales Index set by the National Association of Realtors, based on contracts signed in July, rose 2.4 % to 101.7 – the highest level since April 2010… and just before the deadline for the home buyer tax credit.
With gains in home construction and sales and prices, the report was just the latest one to show momentum in housing market recovery. Pending home sales were up 12.4% year-over-year in July.
Monthly increases in home buying activity were seen in all regions except for the West. . . this is because of the extreme lack of inventory there. The West saw a 1.7% drop in contracts last month. Contracts in the Northeast gained 0.5 % last month and the Midwest increased 3.4%. In the South, contracts rose 5.2%.
More
Even though the number of foreclosure filings dropped last month in California, a real estate tracking firm has reported that Riverside County had the highest foreclosure rate in the state. Countywide, 1 in every 208 households was found to be in some stage of foreclosure – REOs, auction sale notices or mortgage default notices – for a total of 3,850.
Even so, the number of filings was still 12% lower than in March – an approx. 28% less than the foreclosure rate in Riverside a year ago. Nationally, there was a 5% decline in April when compared to March… and 14% less than a year ago. The tracking firm found that this is the lowest foreclosure rate recorded since July of 2007, before the bubble burst.
Last month, California ranked second in the nation in number of foreclosures – with 39,008 filings. This was 14% less than the number in March and 30% lower than last year – when 1 in 351 homes were in default in the state.
The highest foreclosure rate nationwide last month was in Nevada, with 1 in 300 homes in default. California was second, with Florida right behind it with 1 in 364. Number 4 was Arizona with 1 in 377 and follow that with Georgia at Number 5 with 1 in 398 homes in foreclosure.
Looks like we’re not out of the the foreclosure woods yet . . . could this rise in the foreclosure rate be from banks and mortgage lenders processing the foreclosures faster and more efficiently??
More
I sell houses. There..I’ve said it. Sometimes when I tell people this, they look at me knowingly and I can just imagine that they are equating my job with that of a used car salesman or woman. There ARE those Realtors..but I am not one of them. I am a Realist and I have been very uneasy over the past several seasons saying anything at all like “we are recovering!”
Watching the La Quinta market recover
Even I, however, am beginning to think that we will be looking in our rear view mirrors and saying, “2011..that was the bottom.” It does appear that the housing market is stabilizing..all over California according to this article from the LA Times today.. In my own area of the Palm Springs Valley, I am experiencing this upswing daily. The Low End-say $250,000 and under is incuring multiple offers on nearly every home. If a Buyer is trying to purchase with an FHA loan, they will be offering way over List Price and even then, the odds are low they’ll be chosen. Cash & Conventional Loans kick FHA to the bottom of the pile for Sellers.
Even Investors are seeing the market changes. They can no longer make their numbers work..why? Because there aren’t any obscenely under priced homes for sale! The middle tier..$500,000-$850,000 is settling too. Great views and locations are being snapped up. The Luxury Market is still in flux and those Buyers are still pretty fickle..believing they can get a better price if they just wait.
La Quinta and the Palm Springs Valley in general is on the upswing..
More
who wouldn't want to own in La Quinta???
I am working with Investors, or Investment groups from Australia, the UK, New Zealand, Canada and France..and that’s just in the first quarter of 2012. Our Real Estate market is benefitting from foreign buyers belief that the US is the best place in the world to park their money. These buyers are helping reduce our inventory and get the housing market back in balance again..come on down!
Foreign clients bought 41 billion worth of stateside houses and apartments during teh 12 month period that ended in March of 2011, according to the NAR. Pretty much the same as last year..BUT add in the $41 billion spent by immigrants who moved here within the past two years and people with visas for longer than 6 months and the total is $82 billion..up from $66 billion just a year ago.
Realtor.com is nov visible internationally and can be viewed from practically anywhere in the world..and in 12 languages. Wow! Talk about checking out real estate while in the comfort of your own home. What states are they buying in????
1. Florida- nearly 55% of all international sales from May to November, 2011 were in Florida.
2. California-appprox. 6% in California
3. Nevada-5 % of all foreign sales were here.
4. Arizona-17% of foreign investor sales were in AZ
Why in these states? Because these states have the most standing inventory! The glut of homes in these 4 states is still considerable and therefore the price/sf is the best buy..more for your international money! It’s not ALL about investment. It’s also about buying a home in a country where you want to live..even if it’s only part time.
More
Is it time to buy in our winter paradise?
Sales continue to rise here in the Palm Springs Valley. The Median keeps moving slightly down, but that is to be expected when the luxury homes are really starting to pop. So..even when the entry level homes price/sf falls slightly, the luxury home sales fall ALOT and that skews the median. Don’t put too much emphasis on the median price..look at the development in the City you are looking to buy in. Check those comps carefully for the past year and that will tell you the true story in a micro level.
This article from today’s Desert Sun emphasizes all our recent Sales. The last Q of 2011 has continued it’s steady sales numbers into the First Q of 2012. Entry level homes are pretty much consistently receiving multiple offers. I often get outbid on investor homes at this level. First Time homebuyers are taking advantage of the “First Look Initiative” for Freddie and also Fannie Foreclosures and usually beat out the Investors! This is probably a good thing for the healing of our communities.
Luxury home Sales have really started popping. PGA West continues to sell rapidly. Buyers from Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Canada, the beach cities, L.A., and many local buyers that are selling and moving up to communities they have been eyeing but were unable to afford..all are pushing luxury home sales up.
I am hearing over and over…”Where else can I put my money to diversify my portfolio and get such a strong return?” Good question…
More
Outstanding Views bring buyers to Palm Springs area
I have noticed home prices stabilizing in most price points during the past year. It appears this is going to continue through 2012. The really good news? The Builders are back! New Home Sales is where I spent the first 5 years of my real estate career..2000-2005. I sold new homes for Medallist Golf Developments in La Quinta at Norman Estates in PGA West. In that particular development of 58 semi-custom homes, the demand is back. Will prices go back to 2006?? Of course not..at least not for many years if then. But..the Short Sales and Foreclosures in this neighborhood of $850,000 – $1.3 mil homes are about done. There may be one or two more, but the price/sf has been set and there are more Buyers than properties.
New Home developments have stood still for about 3 years now..Sun City in Palm Desert and also Shadow Hills, Indio were still building one or two new homes and Trilogy (all 55+ communities), continued to build slowly. Over the past 3 months, I am now seeing grand openings again! The best thing is that these “new” developments are really just continuations of developments that had been put on hold. Again..great for our Palm Springs Valley. Finish these abandoned or “stopped” projects..really helps a neighborhood.
Palm Springs New Home Builders are getting their mojo back!
More
