This is an interesting article in that it highlights the level of foreclosure irregularities that were found in San Francisco County. This suggests that the majority of foreclosures across the nation with flaws is extremely high.
My concern is will this make buyers afraid to purchase Carmel Real Estate especially REO properties and leading to excessive inventory of unsaleable homes.
You can read the full article here – Article by Gretchen Morgenson
Overall the Carmel real estate market seems to be stable. In total there were twelve new listings and four sales this week. The first six listings for homes in Carmel are, on Fairfield for $1.05M, on Pradera Rd. for $3.999M, on Vizcaino & Mt. View for $1.05M, on La Pradera Ln. for $2.295M, on South San Luis Ave. for $1.09M. The final six homes in Carmel are, on Camino Real & 4th for $1.1M, on 5th & Santa Rita for $2.38M, on Bay View Ave. for $ 2.875M, on Portola Ave. for $749K, on South San Luis Ave. for $939K and on Canada Way for$ 1.065M. All this activity being driven by the AT&T event at Pebble Beach.
There were ten new listings for Pebble Beach, on Crest Rd. for $995K, on Viscaino Rd. for $3.2M, on Ronda Rd. for $1.745M, on Sand Dunes Rd. for $2.995M, on Wranglers Tail Rd. for $935K, on Bird Rock Rd. for $1.995M, on Sombria Ln. for $4.995M, on Hopi Rd. for $899K, on Vaquero Rd. for $987.5K, and finally on Kingsley Ct. for $6.75M. Maybe we should hold major golf tournaments more often… It brings out the sellers as much as the buyers.
Nine homes decreased in price, continuing to fuel buyers believe that there is still bargains to be had. In Carmel five homes had a price decrease, on Casanova St. from $1.75M to $1.45M, on Atherton Dr. from $1.229M to $829K, on Handley Dr. from $959.9K to $835K, on Lobos St. from $799.9 to $774.95K and on Dolores from $2.2M to $1.895M. The remaining three homes were in Pebble Beach, on Coral Dr. from $3.95M to $3.495M, on Riata Rd. from $4.975M to $3.995M, on Crest Rd. from $699K to $510K, and on Flavin Ln. from $6.84M to $5.995M.
To directly quote Louis Cammarosano, general manager of HomeGain, “home buyers and sellers continue to remain apart as to home valuations with the vast majority of home owners thinking their homes are worth more than their agents and the market are telling them.” Based on this it looks like there is still leeway for Home Buyers to negotiate on price, and buyers who offer cash are in a really strong bargaining position. Buyers with loans need to be pre qualified and ready to buy or risk a lower cash offer winning the sale.
This week there were four homes in Carmel that sold and three in Pebble Beach. In Carmel a home on Santa Rita & 1st for $865K after 402 DOM (Days on Market), on Upper Trails for $1.43M after 70 DOM, on Dougherty Pl. for $869K after 98 DOM, on Santa Fe & Ocean for $1.137M after 60 DOM. Reflecting that Carmel real estate sometimes takes time to sell irrespective of the price point. The Pebble Beach Real Estate sales were on Lake Court for $875K after 196 DOM, on Lost Barranca Rd. for $600K after 147 DOM and on Bird Rock Rd. for $2.5M after 115 DOM.
For a larger picture of sales of homes in Carmel, 65 homes have sold in the last 120 days (10/14/11 to 2/11/12). Ranging from $8,100,000 for a home on Scenic & 8th to $323,000 for a REO on Mission & 4th. 40 homes were $1M or under and all of these homes were west of Highway 1.
| List Price | DOM | Sale Price | Beds | Baths | Yr Built | SqFt | Lot Size | Price/Sqft | ||
| Min | $365,600 | -1 | $323,000 | 1 | 1 | 1920 | 0 | 762 | $172 | |
| Max | $8,750,000 | 558 | $8,100,000 | 8 | 7 | 2010 | 6,400 | 69,696 | $1,505 | |
| Avg | $1,239,512 | 131 | $1,151,475 | 3 | 3 | 1960 | 1,858 | 9,375 | $598 | |
| Sum | $80,568,288 | $74,845,900 |
The average price of homes in Carmel for Q4 of 2011 was $1.2 million. Pebble Beach homes averaged $1.9M during the same time period and with interest rates are at their lowest in decades, this is enticing buyers into the market. Most buyers need to apply for a loan. Banks and mortgage lenders adjust their rates based on perceptions of risk, so unless the borrower can show they’re a low-risk individual, the borrower is unlikely to qualify for a rate that matches those seen in recent advertisements and headlines.
The rates quoted are averages drawn from a variety of financial institutions, and lenders use varied approaches to set them. Potential buyers of homes in Carmel and Pebble Beach who want to try for the lowest rates available need to consider basic factors, such as credit score, points, property type, down payment, and length of the loan.
If you are looking to buy Carmel Real Estate you should have a FICO score of 740 or higher, which puts you in the best place for pricing. The lowest rates usually are decreased by paying a fee called a point, or 1 percent of the loan amount. You may buy points in order to get the best rates at many banks. This might make sense depending on the your financial situation and how long you expect to stay in the home. Certain property types like condominiums and duplexes will often have a higher interest rate but most buyers of Carmel and Pebble Beach Real Estate are not in this property category. You also may be charged more if you are not planning to live in the home. If you can put down at least 25 percent you are more likely to obtain the best interest rates. If you have more cash for a down payment then this can also affect the rate since the equity in the property is higher, so don’t forget to ask what is available.
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Princeton Capital acts as both a mortgage banker and mortgage broker, providing the company with the flexibility to tailor their services to each client’s needs. Whether the objective is a fast approval or the most competitive rate, Princeton Capital is qualified to meet it. As a mortgage banker, the company controls the loan process from start to finish. As a mortgage broker, Princeton Capital has the ability to supplement in-house product offerings with loan products from another 75 national and regional lenders if a client’s needs require it. Contact us at Homes in Carmel to get more information.
It looks like a very positive market year ahead for the local real estate here in Carmel and Pebble Beach. Even though there was lots of dismal news about the real estate economy in general last year, there was still lots of interest in the luxury home market here in Carmel by the Sea and Pebble Beach. It has been a buyer’s market here for about 4 years, which, I think, is slowly becoming a neutral market and that’s why I feel 2012 will be a better year than the past years. Of course, any unexpected severe political or financial crisis could tip the economy back into recession, and then all bets are off.
Philip A. White, president and chief operating officer of Sotheby’s International Realty, says “Our numbers as a brand are up year on year significantly.” While average sale prices are about flat compared with last year’s, says White, the company’s transaction volume [2011] is up from 2010.” “We think the reason the high-end market is doing well is [that] investors think this is the bottom of the market,” White concludes.
I speculate that the market in Carmel and Pebble Beach will get better for both sellers and buyers and generate more home sales than previous years. Prices appear to have bottomed out but home buyers and sellers continue to remain apart as to home valuations with home owners thinking their homes are worth more than the market is telling them. Most homeowners think that their home is worth more than the recommended listing price their real estate agent suggests, with some homes sitting on the market far longer than necessary due to an unrealistic listing price. A recent nationwide study by HomeGain showed that 68% of buyers think that homes are overpriced, with almost a third of buyers believing that homes are more than 10% overpriced.
Buyers, on the other hand, need to remember that all homes are different and not to rely on Zillow or other sites for valuation information. It’s misleading and, in some cases, totally unrepresentative of the actual home. Think about it, they have never been there to see the neighborhood, condition of the home, and any improvements made by the seller.
The only downside that I see is that the supply of luxury homes in Carmel and Pebble Beach still has excess inventory and will most likely stay that way for quite some time but with prices starting to stabilize. We will still have more homes sold as vacation home purchases than sold to full time residents.
“Luxury is the best performing segment of the housing market right now,” says Zillow.com chief economist Stan Humphries. Prices of $1 million-plus properties have risen 0.7% since February 2011, according to Zillow. Prices of houses under $1 million have fallen more than 1.5%.
“Luxury properties are drawing buyers from all over the world,” says CoreLogic’s chief economist, Mark Fleming. In addition, I anticipate an onslaught of new multimillionaires heading this way from Silicon Valley, where the resurgent market for initial public stock offerings is creating hundreds of new millionaires especially if the likes of Facebook go public. Facebook is widely expected to file a $10 billion IPO early this year. So, I expect the number of potential buyers for top-tier homes here in Carmel and Pebble Beach to grow dramatically during 2012.
Only time will tell…
Check out the views that you could wake up to every day from this home.
Full details here…
175 Sonoma Ln., Carmel Highlands, CA
Monterey County was California’s hardest hit county earlier this year when the conforming loan limit dropped nationwide from the $729,950 limit to a maximum $625,500. For buyers looking to purchase homes in Carmel, the conforming loan limit fell nearly $247,000 to $483,000, according to the California Association of Realtors (CAR).
Congress has now approved a reinstatement of the FHA loan limits to their pre-September 30 levels. This will immediately provide additional mortgage capital to borrowers looking to buy homes in Carmel via FHA financing. The loan limits will revert to 125% of median area home price, with a cap at $729,750. Those higher limits will be in effect until December 31, 2013 at which point they will again revert to 115% of median area home price with a cap at $626,500. The loan limits for Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed mortgages will remain at 115% of local area median home prices, up to $625,500.
This is by no means a panacea for our local housing market, but could provide a marginal boost to the market in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
Judged by gross dollar volume the real estate market in Carmel-by-the-Sea is looking like it is recovering from a year ago with Q3 2011 gross dollar value of $74,763,800 compared to Q3 2010 value of $44,223,000.
Real Estate sales in Carmel were up from 42 in Q3 2010 to 48 in Q3 2011, suggesting that the market for homes in Carmel-by-the-Sea remains strong. The average sales price was $1,557,000 and the median sales price was $1,212,000 for Q3 2011. The average days on market was 125 and the unsold inventory is still high for Carmel.
The data for this article was compiled from the Monterey Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service and may not reflect all real estate activity. The Association does not guarantee or is responsible for the accuracy of the above data.
This charming 3Bd/3Ba home has been reduced to $1,375,000. Check it out at Once Upon A Time
