In November we continued to see a slow down in appreciation coupled with a tightening of inventory. This resulted in a decrease in prices compared to October, but still gave us increases in year-over pricing for single family detached homes in the North County area at 11 percent and outside of North County at almost 15 percent.
Prices of attached homes fared even better in North County with a 10 percent increase over the previous month and 30 percent compared to November 2012.
The energy-efficient home upgrades tax credit is scheduled to expire on December 31st this year. If you need to make improvements to your home, this could be an incentive to do it before the end of the year. If you have already made qualifying improvements without realizing the tax credit is available, it may seem like a holiday gift you weren’t expecting.
Interest rates increased about ¼ percent in the last two weeks, Mortgage Market in Review. Is this trend going to continue? There’s no clear answer just yet. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a drop in the unemployment rate in November to 7 percent, the lowest it’s been in five years.
Continue reading Interest Rates – Are They on the Way Up?
According to a recent survey, these are the features buyers most want in a new home.
As often happens at this time of year, we’re seeing a tightening of inventory but also a slowing down in appreciation. If you are looking to buy a home right now, you won’t have as many choices, but there isn’t quite as much pressure on home prices. In spite of this, we are still seeing year-over median price increases for single family detached homes at 19 percent in San Diego County. Click on the links below the snapshot to read the full housing statistics reports.
While the market is not as frenzied as it was earlier this year, the housing statistics report is still showing significant year-over price increases in both San Diego County as a whole and North County communities. Prices of single-family detached homes increased 18.75 percent in North County and 21 percent in the county as a whole from September 2012 to September 2013. In the same period, single-family attached home prices increased 30 percent in North County and 29 percent in all of San Diego County. Click on the links below the snapshot to read the full reports.
• The median price for all North County home sales – attached and detached – increased to $499,950 in September 2013 compared to $495,000 in August 2013.
• Detached homes in North County declined 0.87 percent in September 2013 to $570,000 compared to $575,000 in August 2013.
• Year-over median SFD price in North San Diego County jumped 18.75 percent, compared to $480,000 in September 2012 – making 14 months of year-over median price increases.
• The countywide median SFD price increased 3.32 percent in September 2013 to $449,450 compared to $435,000 reported in August 2013.
• Year-over non-North County median price jumped 23.14 percent compared to $365,000 in September 2012, the 18th straight month of year-over median price increases.
• The number of North San Diego SFD listings (active and contingent) increased just 0.18 percent in September 2013 compared to August 2013.
• The number of sold North San Diego County SFD units fell 21.25 percent in September 2013 compared to August 2013. Year-over sold SFD units decreased 5.9 percent compared to September 2012.
• Median days-on-market for single-family detached homes sold in North County increased to 25 days in September 2013 compared to 21 days in August 2013.
• The HomeDex affordability percentage for all homes in North San Diego County was 30 percent in September 2013.
SEPTEMBER 2013 FULL COUNTY HomeDex Report
SEPTEMBER 2013 NORTH COUNTY HomeDex Report
Information taken from HomeDex™ Copyright © 2012 by the North San Diego County Association of Realtors (NSDCAR). Used by permission.
Planning for retirement is obviously important and many times, an activity plagued by procrastination. Some people plan to have their home paid for by that magical date so they won’t have payments after they retire. It makes sense to eliminate a large recurring expense before they quit working.
One strategy would be to be make regular principal contributions in addition to the payments so that it will eliminate the debt by the target retirement date.
Let’s say that a homeowner refinanced their $200,000 mortgage at 4% last year with the first payment due on May 1, 2012. Under normal amortization, the home would be paid for at the end of the term; 30 years in this example.
By making additional principal contributions with each payment, it would accelerate the payoff on the home. An extra $257.13 a month would pay off the mortgage in 20 years. $524.55 extra with each payment would pay off the loan in 15 years; and $796.23 would pay off the loan in 12 years.
Having a home paid for at retirement has the obvious benefit of no house payment. It is also a substantial asset that could be borrowed against or sold if unanticipated events should occur.
Another strategy might involve purchasing a smaller home now to use as a rental that you intend to live when you retire; see Retirement Home Now.
To make some projections to pay off your own mortgage, use this Equity Accelerator.
Following his heart surgery in August, after an issue was discovered during his annual physical, President George W. Bush encouraged everyone to get regular check-ups.
Another important checkup that should be done on a regular basis and can be just as beneficial for your finances is an annual homeowner advisory. Why would you treat your investment in your home with less care than you treat your car or even your HVAC system?
Consider investigating the following:
My goal is to create a lifelong relationship to help you be better homeowners. I want to be your “go to” person whenever you have a real estate question. I want to help you not only when you buy and sell but all of the years in between.
I want to provide good, consumer-based information about homeownership on a regular basis. If it benefits you by helping you be a better homeowner, hopefully, you’ll consider me your real estate professional for life.
Anytime you or your friends need help, please call. Knowing where to get the answer is just as important as knowing the answer. If you’d like information on any of the items I suggested, please let me know.