Gone Fishing...
Gone fishing for a couple of weeks.
I'll be back blogging June 2 with lots of news on Folsom real estate.
See you then...
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Gone fishing for a couple of weeks.
I'll be back blogging June 2 with lots of news on Folsom real estate.
See you then...
This week's green tip from the California Association of Realtors can save you some $$$. Your home probably has appliances and machines or plugs that "suck" electricity or use electricity on a constant basis with no benefit to you, machines such as old refrigerators, printers, chargers for portable devices, and so on. One way to identify these amperage-sucking "vampires" is to connect these devices to the Kill-a-WattTM Electricity Usage Monitor (it retails for approximately $24). The Kill-a-WattTM unit's large LCD display counts consumption by the kilowatt-hour, the same as your local utility. You can calculate your electrical expenses by the day, week, month, or year and evaluate your appliances' efficiency. You'll know if it's time for a new refrigerator or if that old air conditioner is cost-efficient. Live green, live long!
What better way to start my real estate week then to take a quick snapshot of where we are real estate-wise in Folsom this beautiful May morning? Here is what the MLS numbers tells us:
Some interesting realities show up in these few numbers, especially when you look at the differences in median price and days on the market...
Have a great day!
Guest blogger Barbara Van Duyn, a mortgage planning specialist with First Priority Financial, has some good news for us about Jumbo Interest Rates. If you have any mortgage questions, you can reach her directly at Barbara@VanDuynGroup.com.
In March we told you that HUD announced increased loan limits for conforming and governments back loans across the country. In Sacramento County, conforming, FHA and VA limits increased to $580,000. Those of us in the industry were expecting interest rates for these higher loan balances to find their way to our borrowers sooner than later but it has been painfully slow in coming. This week Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced they were lifting a premium for these new conforming Jumbo loans resulting in rates improving up to .500%. Regarding FHA Jumbo loans, not all lenders are currently offering these new loan limits. So a word of caution, if you are in need of financing a mortgage above $417,000 make sure you are working with a mortgage professional who has lenders offering BOTH the new conforming Jumbo loans and FHA Jumbo loans with the improved pricing. Until we meet again, take care. Barbara
I'm a little behind on posting recent Folsom home sales and will try to catch up over several posts. If you don't see what you're looking for, drop me a line and I'll look it up for you. The following Folsom home sales were recorded by MetroList, our local multiple listing service. The properties were listed and sold by various multiple listing service brokers.
That's it for today. Enjoy the afternoon.
Looking at the stats for April, the real estate news is mixed for Folsom. On the one hand, sales were down with 47 sales recorded last month (from 72 in March), but then, on the other hand, the median price of sold homes was up to $422,500 from $415,000 the previous month. Overall, there were 496 Folsom homes on the market in April, down from 521 in March. Those had a median sales price of $435,950, a bit higher than the $422,500 median price of the homes that actually sold (remember, in this market, especially, pricing is KEY). And, looking back two years to April '06, the median price of sold homes in Folsom was $491,000. At $422,500 this past April, we are down 18.75 percent in price over two years.
That's it for today. Make it a great day!
For the green-minded homeowner, the California Association of Realtors has started sending out “green tips of the week.” I receive these through my e-mail and thought it would be worthwhile posting them on my blog. This week: Eco-Friendly Paint Strippers, namely--aMAIZEingTM Biobased Solvent & Stripper. This is a 100-percent bio-based solvent and stripper, derived from corn and soybeans, that removes adhesives, paint from concrete, masonry, wood, metal and other surfaces. This multipurpose product also can be used to remove graffiti from concrete. Go to www.greenproducts.net for more info. And for other eco-friendly paint strippers, check out www.m-tc.com/ and www.soyclean.biz/paint_stripper.asp.
A look at recorded home sales this March in El Dorado, Placer, and Sacramento counties shows the picture is not so bleak when it comes to real estate in Folsom. I know, I know, especially for those of you trying to sell your house right now, things may not look so rosy, but just take a glance across the backyard fence and you'll see we are actually doing OK in Folsom. While most other area communities saw double-digit drops in the price of homes this March compared with March '07, Folsom only saw a 9.81 percent drop in prices. That compares with a 27.50 percent drop in all of Sacramento County. Check out the numbers for a few other area communties:
See, I told you, it could have been worse. Check back in a month and we'll see if the trend holds. Until then, make it a great day!
The Federal Reserve Bank cut the Fed Funds Rate this week. What does it mean for you as a homeowner? See what guest blogger Barbara Van Duyn, a mortgage planning specialist with First Priority Financial, has to say below. If you have any mortgage questions, you can reach her directly at Barbara@VanDuynGroup.com.
By now you’ve probably heard that the Federal Reserve Bank announced another reduction of the Fed Funds Rate by .250 percent on Wednesday, April 30th. That brings the FFR down to 2.00 percent. Although the FFR is used for bank to bank transactions, the lowering of this rate is good news for homeowners. Prime rate dropped by .250 and is now at 5.00 percent. So if your HELOC (home equity line of credit) hasn’t been converted to a fixed rate, your monthly payment will be dropping. Another huge benefit is for consumers who have Adjustable Rate Mortgages or ARMs tied to the LIBOR index. The LIBOR index moves in the same direction as the Fed Funds Rate. To illustrate, the FFR was at 5.25 percent in August of 2007 and the 1-year LIBOR was at 5.21 percent.
Fast forward six months, a series of seven Federal Reserve cuts later and the 1-year LIBOR is now at 2.98 percent. So if you have an ARM tied to LIBOR and scheduled to “reset” soon, your new interest rate may reset lower. You can figure this out by reviewing your mortgage “NOTE” to see which “INDEX” and “MARGIN” you have. The other option is to ask your mortgage professional to review your loan documents and help you understand how your ARM will perform. Until we meet again, take care. Barbara
