5 Secrets Buyers and Sellers Must Know About Virtual Home Tours

5 Secrets Buyers and Sellers Must Know About Virtual Home Tours couple watching virtual tour on tablet

For years now, virtual home tours have helped real estate buyers far and wide find the perfect home. They help military personnel being relocated, investors expanding their portfolio, and homeowners looking for a vacation getaway. Virtual tours make finding a house that’s out of driving distance much easier. And for real estate agents, virtual tours have been a useful way to help buyers with their home search. They also allow us to assist sellers in creatively marketing their homes.

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October Gardening Tips 2020

October Gardening Tips 2020 Pam Fraser narcissus in my garden

As long as the weather stays cool, October’s a great time for planting everything other than tropical and semi-tropical plants. Planting in fall allows strong root systems to develop so what you put in the ground now can produce spring flowers and survive next summer’s heat.

This is also a good time to divide many perennials. Take a look at October 2019 gardening tips for more information.

Here are some October gardening tips to keep your yard looking beautiful year-round.

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September 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

September 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets Pam Fraser

September North County and San Diego real estate markets are still strong. If you’re thinking of selling, the time is right. If you’re looking to buy, it is the best of times, and it is the worst of times. Buyers can take advantage of historically low interest rates, but are being thwarted by the lack of inventory.

Is the market likely to change soon? Experts predict the real estate market will remain strong throughout 2020, but some think we may see a slowdown in 2021. Mortgage lenders expect home loan rates to remain low, perhaps through 2021. But they do caution that with a COVID vaccine or possible inflation, we will see interest rates rise.

North County and San Diego Real Estate September 2020

Both North County and San Diego County as a whole saw strong, year-over, median price gains of 12.6 and 11.9 percent respectively. Inventory dropped compared to last year by approximately 50 percent. Year-over market times were significantly shorter, and while we saw a drop in new listings, pending sales increased by approximately 25 percent.

See below for this month’s statistics and daily interest rate updates.

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Move-Up Home vs. Second Home: Which One Is Right for You?

Move-Up vs. Second Home: Which One Is Right for You?

The pandemic has changed the way many of us live, work, and attend school—and those changes have impacted our priorities when it comes to choosing a home. Some of us are considering a move-up or a second home.

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September Gardening Tips 2020

September Gardening Tips 2020 Fire behind Carlsbad homes

September is a great month to start seeds, do some cleanup work and get your garden ready for planting once the weather cools off. Here are some September gardening tips to help you get your yard ready for fall.

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Home Office Tips

Home Office Tips modern home office Pam Fraser

As more people are transitioning to working from home in some capacity, the need for a well-designed home office is paramount. Having a space where you feel comfortable and motivated will lead to increased productivity and happiness. To create the perfect working space, consider the following home office tips.

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August 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

August 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

The August North County and San Diego real estate markets showed strong, year-over median price increases last month. Pent up buyer demand, historically low interest rates and continued inventory shortages are all keeping pressure on home prices, despite the impact of COVID-19.

Those low interest rates are also motivating homeowners to refinance. If you have already refinanced your home, you are lucky to have missed the 0.5 percent “adverse market fee” on all refinances that was just announced by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Freddie Mac said this new fee is going into effect as of September 1 “as a result of risk management and loss forecasting precipitated by COVID-19 related economic and market uncertainty.” If you’d like more information about this new refinance fee, please contact me.

North County and San Diego Real Estate August 2020

Year-over, median prices were up 10.3 percent countywide and 11.1 percent in North County. Inventory dropped by about one-half compared to the previous year, and market times were shorter. The number of new listings dropped while pending sales increased in both markets.

See below for this month’s statistics and daily interest rate updates.

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August Gardening Tips 2020

August Gardening Tips 2020 Pam Fraser tagetes lemmonii

Brace yourself for this month’s hot, dry weather and make sure your plants are properly irrigated. Here are some August gardening tips to help keep your garden happy and healthy.

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July 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

July 2020 North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

We are continuing to see tight inventory and short market times in North County and San Diego real estate markets this July. Bidding wars are commonplace. But experts predict a slowing market in months to come. CoreLogic’s Home Price Insights report forecasts a year-over decline of 6.6 percent in home prices nationally. Though in San Diego, they estimate that drop to only be 1.3 percent.

Although prices are expected to soften slightly, it’s doubtful we will see many foreclosures due to COVID-19. This market is very different than it was during the Great Recession. Inventory is scarce. Homeowners have equity, and mortgage delinquency rates in San Diego County are very low compared to the rest of the country. The San Diego Union Tribune recently published a good explanation of why large numbers of foreclosures are probably not in our future.

North County and San Diego Real Estate July 2020

Of all the markets within the county, North County is the only one that saw a year-over decrease in prices with the median sales price dropping 2.5 percent. Countywide, year-over prices were up 2.4 percent. Inventory dropped by almost 50 percent in both markets, and pending sales were up over 20 percent compared to the previous year.

See below for this month’s statistics and daily interest rate updates.

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July Gardening Tips 2020

July Gardening Tips Pam Fraser monarch butterfly

Summer’s in full swing and we are entering our three hottest and often driest months in San Diego County. Make sure your garden has plenty of water, and don’t forget to add mulch to keep the soil cool and moist.

Here are some July gardening tips to help your yard stay beautiful throughout the summer.

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