Real Estate Blog 
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Fullerton Joint Union High School District
Friday, May 24th, 2013 at 8:46am. 10 Views, 0 Comments.
Found this press release for our high school district.
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 22, 2013--
Fitch Ratings has affirmed the following ratings for Fullerton Joint Union High School District (the district):
--$1.7 million series 2002A general obligation (GO) bonds at 'AA+';
--$22.3 million certificates of participation (COPs) at 'AA';
The Rating Outlook is revised to Stable from Negative.
SECURITY
The GO bonds are secured by an unlimited ad valorem tax on all taxable property within the district.
The district has pledged to include all lease payments for the COPs in its annual budgets and to make lease payments from all sources of available funds. The district also pledges to maintain 24 months rental interruption insurance and maintains a…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts-Labor Shortage Biggest Hurdle for Homebuilders
Thursday, May 23rd, 2013 at 7:55am. 12 Views, 0 Comments.
Though residential construction “is keeping the economy on an expansionary path,” Moody’s Analytics suggests in its latest “ResiLandscape” report that homebuilders are having a tough time shouldering the burden of growth on their own.
In its analysis, Moody’s echoed two of the most common concerns voiced by builders today: lack of labor and rising building costs.
“Homebuilders are finding it difficult to rebuild the industry and, in particular, to find skilled labor,” wrote Celia Chen, senior director of economic research at Moody’s. “The Great Recession decimated the homebuilding industry, with a 42 percent decline in residential construction jobs from peak to trough, a loss of 1.4 million jobs. To date, only 8 percent of…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts-
Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 8:47pm. 19 Views, 0 Comments.
May 14, 2013 Realtor.com®, the leader in online real estate operated by Move, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOVE), released its April data showing that the U.S. housing market is on its way to a broad-based recovery, an accelerated trend since March. The home buying season shifted into high gear last month as inventory and home list prices on realtor.com® increased by 4.12 percent and 2.63 percent, month over month, respectively. As of April, homes are on the market nationwide approximately 81 days—a decrease of nearly 11 percent since April 2012—highlighting that while new homes are entering the market they are not available for long.
"Due to increased demand for homes and more confidence in the job market – we are beginning to see more and more buyers…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Mortgage Rates Projected to Increase (infographic)
Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 4:24pm. 15 Views, 0 Comments.
The Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae and the National Association of Realtors have all projected that the 30-year mortgage rate will be at least 4% by the end of 2013. If we assume that rates will still be at 4% in twelve months, here is the difference a buyer will pay if they wait.
Tony Leocadio
Prudential California Realty
714-673-7363
www.agentx2.com
www.fullertonhomesearch.com
www.youragentgreg.com
www.tonyleocadio.com
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Existin Home Sales remain below Demand
Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 3:25pm. 23 Views, 0 Comments.
After falling in March, existing-home sales increased in April, although they were still not enough to meet underlying demand due to limited inventory and tight credit, reports the National Association of Realtors. All regions recorded year-over-year price gains.
"The powerful combination of all-time low mortgage rates and home prices that were significantly reduced after the housing crisis is fueling demand," says Quicken Loans Chief Economist. "It’s quite likely that we will look back on this period as being among the best times in history to purchase a home. As the economy continues to firm, the likelihood that interest rates will rise increases and home prices will continue their upward climb as well."
In April, existing-home sales — completed…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Foreclosures Drop
Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 8:53am. 12 Views, 0 Comments.
The number of Americans in the foreclosure process plummeted by nearly 25% in the past year, according to Lender Processing Services First Look mortgage report for April.
The total delinquency rate for loans 30 days or more past due, but not yet in foreclosure, also fell below 6.5% for the first time since July of 2008.
The total number of homeowners who are either delinquent or in foreclosure maintained its downward trajectory, reaching 4.7 million in April, LPS Applied Analytics noted.
Currently, 6.21% of loans surveyed by LPS are classified as 30-days past due, but not in foreclosure. The delinquency rate is down 5.81% from the prior month and 9.61% from year ago levels.
The total U.S. foreclosure pre-sale inventory rate hit 3.17% in April, down 24.55%…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts-Sale-to-List Price Ratios Climbing as Bidding Wars Rage
Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 at 7:59am. 12 Views, 0 Comments.
Last year, some analysts were speculating the large supply of REOs and shadow inventory would keep the market depressed, but instead, the market is dealing with a lack of inventory available for sale, Pro Teck Valuation Services noted in its May Home Value Forecast (HVF).
“[I]n reality the shortage of housing inventory has led buyers to bid more competitively against one another leading to significant home price increases and tighter housing conditions,” said Tom O’Grady, CEO of Pro Teck. “Aside from anecdotal stories, Home Value Forecast shows that one of the most reliable leading indicators to support this theory is the Sold-To-List Price ratio.”
According to the report authors, the sold-to-list price ratio tends to land…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts-Prices, Sales, Inventory All Climb in April
Tuesday, May 21st, 2013 at 11:35am. 16 Views, 0 Comments.
The housing market came out of April in a particularly strong position, according to Redfin’s latest with prices, sales, and inventory posting gains across the country.
Redfin’s monthly report—based on home prices, sales, and inventory across 19 U.S. markets—shows prices rose 4.9 percent in April on a monthly basis and 16.1 percent on a yearly basis. Out of the 19 metros measured in Redfin’s report, 18 reported month-over-month increases in April, the same number as in March. All metros experienced price increases on a year-over-year basis.
San Francisco, Sacramento, and Las Vegas saw the biggest year-over-year price gains, improving 34.5 percent, 33.5 percent, and 31.6 percent, respectively.
“The housing market…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Market Update for May 20th
Tuesday, May 21st, 2013 at 9:06am. 15 Views, 0 Comments.
Given the week's mostly disappointing economic data, it was hard to believe the bulls prevailed on Wall Street again, pushing stocks to their fourth weekly gain in a row with the Dow and the S&P 500 indexes setting new records. To be fair, the bulls did have some decent reports on which to base their enthusiasm. April Retail Sales, Building Permits, and Leading Economic Indicators all surprised to the upside. The Michigan Consumer Sentiment index for May also handily beat estimates.
However, a plethora of indicators headed to the downside, starting with weak readings for April Industrial Production and the New York Empire Manufacturing Index for May. The disappointing economic news continued with higher than expected Initial Unemployment Claims, a dip in…
Orange County Real Estate Thoughts - Time to Remain Optimistic
Tuesday, May 21st, 2013 at 9:01am. 15 Views, 0 Comments.
It definitely takes guts to remain optimistic in the face of some of the housing data coming at us these days. Last week, for example, we were greeted with a 16.5% drop in Housing Starts for April. It helps to dig into these reports. The dip was mostly due to multi-family starts, which are very volatile month to month, and were down 38.9%. Turns out, single-family starts were off just 2.1%. Taking a long-term view helps even more. Starts overall are up 13.1% versus a year ago, with single-family starts up a healthy 20.8%. So there.
It didn't take any effort at all to stay optimistic in the face of the April Building Permits report. New building permits rose 14.3% during the month to a 1.02 million annual rate. Permits for single-family homes are now up…