Today is one of those days when I am looking outside of our window I’m reeeaaaallly wishing I was at the beach. But alas, you gotta go what you gotta do to earn that extra dollar. But hey, enough about this awesome beach weather. Let’s get to OCREMR!

OC Register analyst G.U. Krueger argues that entrepreneurs will be the saviors of the housing market. Why? Well it’s an interesting thought that you can read all about here.  But the basic gist is that California has always been at the forefront of entrepreneurship, and not just because of Silicon Valley. Los Angeles and Orange County have bred plenty of start-ups, both small and big. Recent research shows that entrepreneurial activity has really picked up the last year, particularly due to the fact that venture capitalists are more open to investing in start-ups now than they were earlier in the recession. So with money currently flowing into Silicon Valley and the LA-OC metro area, these new entrepreneurial firms are not going to just create jobs, but high paying jobs. This, naturally, would increase demand for housing. First in the form of rentals and then for home ownership. I think it’s a unique perspective on what will fix housing. Small firms have always been the driving force of this country so it just might be the winning recipe.

Next has been the noticeable trend of there being fewer foreclosures and more short sales. According to MSN News, it has become increasingly difficult for non-investors to acquire foreclosed properties. On top of the fact that most foreclosure purchases are usually with all cash, and buyers rarely get the chance to inspect the property before they buy it, banks are just starting to prefer short sales. With a foreclosure, everyone loses including the borrower, the bank, and the community. Plus banks are now getting slammed with fines from municipalities when they don’t properly maintain their foreclosed properties. As a result, sales of pre-foreclosure homes have been up 15% while REO sales have fallen 12%. If you’re a homebuyer looking for a bargain, this is good news for you.

However, on the flip side of things credit scores for approved loans have been rising, making it difficult for people even with a 720 FICO to get approved for a loan. Overall, analysts have found that the average credit score for approved loans is rising while acceptable loan-to-value ratios have been declining. So in other words, banks are requiring higher credit scores and higher down payments to be eligible for approval. I don’t know about you, but this may complicate things…

Well that’s all for now, until next time!

Hope everyone has been well since out last blog post! Got some exciting stuff to talk about today. Instead of focusing on local and national news on the current trends in the real estate market, we want to talk to you about an exciting event. So let’s get to it!

E&V is extremely proud and excited to announce that the Orange County Philharmonic has chosen one of our listing to use for their 20^th Philharmonic House of Design! The listing of ours they selected is a stunning, one-of-a-kind custom built home in the hills of Laguna Beach. There is no other home like it. Here is an excerpt from the Philharmonic’s website: “Located amidst 40 acres of coastal hills in the idyllic community of Laguna Beach this extraordinary 11,000 sq. ft. estate showcases panoramic ocean and city light views from every direction. Contemporary in design, with a hint of craftsman, the house blends effortlessly into its natural setting. The infinity pool and numerous terraces surrounding the perimeter create an oasis of privacy available to the fortunate few. As a special bonus, the location provides an opportunity to feature the renowned artists of Laguna Beach. Interior Designers from Orange County and LA will transform this home into a stunning retreat.

The House of Design is available to rent for corporate and private parties. Proceeds Benefit the Philharmonic Society Youth Music Education Programs.”

We’re all very excited about this event which will be taking place from April 24 – May 20, 2012. There are many ways in which you can keep up-to-date with the event by visiting the Philharmonic’s website, facebook page, or by getting more details from this YouTube video. This is a wonderful event that supports a great cause so we highly encourage you to buy tickets for this event so you can tour this gorgeous home for yourself!

Annnnnnd we’re back! So let’s get straight to it!

Today I want to focus mostly on a rising trends: net-zero energy homes. These homes are pretty awesome, if I may say so myself. Back in 2009, the average American paid $2,200 for energy use in their homes. If you could change that number to $2.01, does that sound like something you might be interested in? Well, through this great article from Inman, more and more developers are making these homes available to homebuyers. Part of the reason behind the surge in interest, is due to the rising cost of energy and the decrease in cost of going green. Before you used to have to pay a hefty premium to make your home environmentally friendly. Now, you often only have to pay $7,000 more than you would pay for an ordinary home. Since it’s now more affordable than ever to go green, large home builders such as Shea Homes have announced that they will start making net-zero-energy or near-net-zero-energy homes across the country.

But what if you already are happy in your home and you just want to make it semi-green? Well for about $1,000 you can install some high quality foam insulation and upgrade your windows. So you should look into it! We think it’s pretty cool and it’s a great way to save money long-term on your property.

In other news from Inman, the market has obviously been flooded the last few years with debt forgiveness programs such as foreclosures, short sales, and refinances. However, what most people don’t realize is that these programs can often bring negative consequences to your taxes, such as turning the amount you were “forgiven” by into taxable income. Nevertheless, there are ways to avoid these circumstances and this article provides great tips on how to properly proceed.

Lastly, to complete the tri-factor of Inman articles, it’s easy to increase the space of your home by simply looking out the window. Read…and you shall understand. That’s all the wisdom I have to impart today, until next time!

Apologies for the lack of updates! Things have been extremely busy down here and there is no doubt that activity in housing is going UP! For the sake of our audience, I don’t want to leave you completely hanging. However, right now I cannot right a full blog as I normally do (sorry!). But below you will find some links to some great articles that back up my statements about the market trending up. These are exciting times, and may the very beginning of a long climb up to the top!

Proposed Bill to Speed Up Short Sale Process and Prevent Foreclosure.

Housing Expected to Add to GDP for First Time in 7 Years.

5 factors to weigh before renting out your home

Remodeling Improvements That Entice Buyers

Why does it continue to be so hot in January? 80 degree weather is for June! But hey, warm weather does spur action in the real estate markets because buyers and agents are more willing to get out in the field to view and tour properties, so I guess that one bright side. But as an avid skier, having only fake snow in the mountains is always a downer. But you know what isn’t a downer? This week’s OCREMR so let’s get to it!

For this entire month we have been hearing forecast predictions for 2012, most of them positive stating that there will be moderate growth and activity in the real estate market. But one of the biggest issues for the slow real estate market in the past few years has been the tight restrictions of banks. But we’re finally receiving data via DS News that banks are starting to loosen credit which should lead to more activity. Banks are starting to lend up to 3.5 times borrower earnings, which us up from 3.2. Furthermore, banks are also willing to lend at a higher LTV average of 82% which is a big increase in the 74% LTV average of the last few years.  These are strong indicators that there indeed may be an increase in activity over the next year.

Locally, looks like progress will finally begin on the development of 5,000 new homes in the Great Park project, according to the OC Register. FivePoint, the developer, will begin in the north and south ends of the project and meet in the middle. However they might run into trouble with funding because of Gov. Jerry Brown’s movement to abolish redevelopment agencies – like the one that is funding the Great Park project. It has been a long time coming for this project to get started and it looks like there will be many more battles to fight, so we’ll see how it all turns out…if it ever does.

Now let’s get to some selling tips! There’s never been any secret about it, but often times the kitchen can be the maker or breaker when it comes to selling your home. People love kitchens, and the nicer it is the better chance you have of selling your home. But be careful! Kitchen remodeling is extremely expensive and you might not get a return on your investment. RealtyTimes provides some good tips on the homework you have to do on your neighborhood and market before you beautify your kitchen. Be careful when you decided to under price your home if you’re interested in sparking a bidding war. Inman news provides some great advice of when it is and isn’t appropriate to utilize this tactic.

Lastly, I was given some great advice the other day so I will pass on the wisdom to you. The real estate market is ever changing and every week there are new trends, technologies, and opinions. In order to successfully sell your home is it important to keep up to date. You will never know everything and there will also be some confusion. Embrace the confusion though, because if you’re not confused, then you don’t know what’s going on!

First post of the New Year! Yes, it is a little bit later than we originally intended to get around to it, but this summer-like weather has just been throwing us off. I mean, 85 degrees in Irvine in January, really? But now that it finally feel s like a winter day, we’re back in the winter groove so lets get to this week’s OCREMR, we got some good stuff!

To get us started, Federal officials are hoping to launch a program sometime this year that will convert government-owned foreclosures into rental properties by selling them to investors in bulk. This is actually a pretty good idea because it will help raise the value in neighborhoods that are filled with vacant homes that are rotting by the minute. There are no specific details on how exactly this is going to work out but the goals is get it launched within the first quarter of 2012. The sales of these homes will also slightly help Fannie, Freddie, and FHA. We all know how much they need it!

Elsewhere in Fannie and Freddie land, Fannie’s Chief Economist Doug Duncan  is predicting that homes sales will rise 3.5% in 2012, with the second half of the year outpacing the first. The primary reasoning behind this is the rise in employment. But let’s reflect here, if Fannie was always right, then we would be in this current economic whirlwind would we? We’re not saying housing isn’t going to rise, we’re just saying that we want to hear others aside from a desperate Fannie to say that things are looking up for the coming year.

In some upbeat news, despite the mess in housing, the overall economy, the large amount of foreclosures and short sales…homeownership is STILL of high value to Americans.

Lastly, in some funny new, OJ Simpson might lose his old home. But he is in prison, so he doesn’t need it, right? ‘Til next time! 

Well we’ve reached the last week to get your holiday shopping done. And if you’re like me, well then you still have to get STARTED with all of your shopping. If you need a break from the mayhem you have to deal with at the mall and other shopping centers, then sit back and relax with this week’s round up!

Mortgage rates continue to free-fall and have re-reached a record low. So that means they’re cheaper in every way right? Well that might not be the case if the new payroll tax cut deal is approved. According to FoxNews (an EV blog newcomer, welcome!), in exchange for the two-month tax cut there is a permanent increase in fees that are backed by Fannie, Freddie, and FHA. If you already have a mortgage backed by one of those government entities then don’t fret! This only applies to new mortgages and refinances. So why the fee? It’s actually meant to pay for the $33 billion payroll tax cut package. The other purpose, ironically, is actually to encourage more borrowers to get into the private market. It’s hard to say if this fee will create a flight to the private sector because it is pretty nominal…$360 more per year on a $400,000 mortgage. But hey, at least the government is trying, right?

In other news, an interesting article was written on the reasons why there is still such a fear of homeownership when rates are at record lows and home prices are as cheap as they have been since 2003. The findings were interesting because some of the top reasons were cost of owning  home, fear of property taxes going up, home repair costs, fear of credit not being good enough, and…fear of mortgage payments rising. Does anyone want to start a class on fixed mortgages?

Then of course, it’s not a real blog post unless we pull something from our BFFs, the OC Register. According to the Real Estate Research Council of Southern California, home prices in O.C. have dipped 4.1% this fall. Now their method is different from what stats we usually see that are found by computer tracking and formulas. This review comes from a small data sample of houses which they track from time to time. So what does this finding teach us? Nothing we already didn’t know…

Probably wont have any blog posts until the end of the year so we want to thank all of our readers and followers that made 2011 amazing. Have a safe and happy Christmas, happy holidays, and happy new year! We’ll see you in 2012.

Woe! Sorry for the delay on these updates! But while most people like to ease-off during the holiday season, we see it as the perfect chance to cease opportunities that are being ignored! But any way, it’s cold, it’s rainy, I got my cup of Joe so let’s get to it!

Interestingly enough, some people are predicting a fairly strong housing recovery in 2012. According to HousingWire, the biggest proponent of this prediction is none other than Barclays Capital analyst Stephen Kim. He points to the fact that employment numbers are improving and prices for non-distressed home sales have stabilized for almost a year. Others also point to the fact that rents continue to rise and so it will become increasingly more affordable to buy instead of rent. Despite all of this, however, people seem to forget that the unemployment numbers don’t count those who have had to settle for a part-time job or those who have given up their job search altogether. So the real unemployment rate here in California, for example, is realistically somewhere between 14% - 16%. But even more importantly…banks wont lend! So the other economic numbers can increase all they want but if people cant get approved for loans then they cant buy homes! We think there will be growth, but nothing that can qualify as a true recovery.

RISMedia, however, is looking at the grander picture of the housing recovery that will occur over the next 10 years. What is the key going to be? Renters! And it makes sense if you think about it. Rents are rising, investors are flocking to residential investments for stable cash flow, so why not make life easier on these investors to purchase the properties? May be wishful thinking though, as nothing seems to be allowed to be as easy as it could be. Did that make grammatical sense?

In other interesting news, Prudential sold its real estate franchise business to Canadian-based franchisor Brookfield Residential Property Services. The timing of this seems strategic on both sides as the franchise division produced $4 million in adjusted gross income during the first none months of the year for Prudential which is down from $22 million during the same period in 2010 .

Lastly, bringing it back home, the OC Register reports that 57% of O.C. escrows are distressed homes. So it looks like the majority of people in the area are still looking for deals, which certainly drives down the price of non-distressed homes. Is O.C. poised for a recovery in 2012? It seems that the unpredictability of the economy makes everyone wrong just as often as they’re right. So we’ll see…

Happy Holidays and Welcome to another week of OCREMR! I hope you all had tons to eat for Thanksgiving.

According to Inman news (What? Not the OC register?), there are several tax credits and deductions set to expire at the end of the year. To qualify for the full Mortgage insurance premium deduction, a couple or a single taxpayer must have an adjusted gross income of $100,000 or less. A deduction of up to $4,000 for qualified education expenses is available for 2011. Any homeowner may qualify for an energy credit of up to $500. If you itemize, you can deduct either your state and local taxes or your sales taxes paid during the year.

Mortgage rates continue to be near record lows. Economic worries keep lid on mortgage rates. Economic uncertainty makes relatively safe bets like mortgage-backed securities that fund most home loans popular with investors. Expected rates for a 30-year mortgage are around 4.1 percent. With mortgage rates close to an all time low, the median home prices are lower than the average rent levels. In Atlanta, the monthly payment for a home is $539 and the average price for rent is $840. Why hasn’t this increased the demand for houses? Because affordability alone hasn’t been enough to overcome the obstacles in the way of a housing recovery. Home ownership carries other costs—including taxes, insurance, homeowner association dues and maintenance, which is a reason why people choose to rent rather than buy houses.

When you think about the holidays, what do you think of? Christmas and the gifts? Thanksgiving and the food? Do you ever think about what it takes to get those gifts and prepare the food? People are extremely busy during the holiday season, which is why it might be a good idea to take your home off the market for the holidays. Buyers may be too busy to look at the property, and even if your property is sold, you have to move out in one of the busiest times of the year. Is it a smart idea to take your home off the market for the holidays? Top-selling Realtor Jennie Ling says taking your home off the market during the Christmas season is a mistake. Ling says that you should let the realtor do all the work while you shop and go to work. She says that the holidays are a good time to sell your home because most people are off work which allows people to go look at properties. You can shop and sell your house at the same time!

Welcome to another week of OCREMR!

According to the OC register (Yes, we are using them again), OC home prices hit 9 year low, Mortgage rates are still near record lows, and rent continues to rise. The median selling price for houses in the OC in the month of October was $405,000, down 7.5 percent from a year ago, which is the lowest median home price in any month since April 2009. Prices are declining at its fastest rate since April 2009. Mortgage rates are still near record low at an average of 3.99%. With record low median prices for houses are low mortgage rates, why aren’t people buying!? Oh yeah…banks aren’t lending. What do people do instead? Go out and rent an apartment or home. People renting out places know this and are taking advantage by increasing rent. SoCal rents have averaged 1.1% annual rate of gain the past three years and 4.4% over the past decade.

Lyon Homes files for Bankruptcy. William Lyon Homes, the Newport Beach-based developer, will file for bankruptcy protection as part of a debt reorganization plan. These efforts are to strengthen the Company and position William Lyon Homes as an industry leader. Lyon homes hopes their note holders and senior secured leaders will support because it was strengthen the company. Lyon Homes ends up with about $310 million in outstanding debt, much at reduced interest rates. Irvine housing consultant John Burns said this recapitalization package should help Lyon Homes financially, but he is unsure of how this decision will affect homebuyers.

Check out pictures from our most recent event!

http://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.306828042669227.79510.167862813232418&type=3