While meeting with first time home buyers this past week, I was reminded of how fortunate I am to have been able to work with this very extraordinary group of buyers. Beside the fact that I learn so much from this group, there is just something about a first time home buyer, maybe it is an aura they possess, I am not sure, however, helping them into home ownership gives me the most gratifying feeling and makes my job as a realtor the very best!

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Did you know that there is a way to keep your original tax base if you move from one property in Santa Barbara County to another property within Santa Barbara County?  If this sounds interesting; here are a few facts.

What Are Proposition 60 and 90?
These propositions provide a one time property tax benefit by preventing reassessment when a senior citizen (age 55 years or older) sells his/her existing residence and purchases or constructs a replacement residence worth the same or less than the original property.  This proposition either applies to the principal claimant of the original residence or a spouse who resides with the seller who must also be 55 years of age at the time of the sale.

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Think you can’t live in Santa Barbara for under under $650,000?  … Think again.

Let’s face it, who wouldn’t want to live or retire in Santa Barbara?  For many people, Real Estate prices in Santa Barbara seem so prohibitive, they are content to rent just to be here. Some are spending thousands of dollars on rent and receiving no equity in a property. There IS another way to have it all!!
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First, what is a Realtor? A Realtor is someone who has gone the extra mile to follow a strict code of ethics for your benefit. Realtors belong to the Association of Realtors as well as the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) while an agent belongs only to the MLS and does not submit to any controls set up by a code of ethics & grievance process.

Are you interested in their track record for selling property? This consists of asking how many transactions they were involved in last year and will directly affect their negotiating ability on your behalf. We all have the same license but different agents get different results and the bottom line is more cash in your pocket at the time of sale.

If you are like most people your home is one of your most valuable possessions and can represent the majority of your assets. Isn’t it like going to the doctor and being a proactive patient, how many operations have you done like this one in the past 12 months Doctor? You owe it to your self to know who your Realtor is professionally speaking.

In today’s Buyers Market – overflowing with 11 months of home inventory - you cannot afford to list your property with an agent who isn’t willing or able to invest the time and money necessary to make your home stand out above the rest. You need a competitive edge, and an agent that can provide it through an aggressive marketing campaign.

Here are 10 simple questions that will help you pick the right agent for the job: (more…)

Dr. Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors recently said that “Commenting on the National Housing Market is like discussing the National Temperature…like the weather, all real estate is local.” This couldn’t be truer than in Santa Barbara where both our climate and real estate market are different than most parts of the country.

The news media paints a very bleak picture of the housing market with headlines talking about slumping sales, decreasing values, and a rampant escalation of foreclosures. However, it is important to consider the source of these headlines. The majority of television news media is targeted to a national audience and therefore is summarizing countrywide housing trends. Even local newspapers are primarily printing articles from wire services which again tout national statistics. Other media sources focus on California, but don’t generally provide relevance to the Santa Barbara real estate market which is behaving very differently than most other communities across the state. Sometimes you will hear or read reports about Santa Barbara County which can still be misleading because they include statistics that lump together Southern Santa Barbara County (Carpinteria through Goleta) with North County (Lompoc and Santa Maria). Even these two neighboring communities are currently experiencing very different real estate markets.

Here’s my take on the recent headlines as to how they apply to the Southern Santa Barbara County real estate market:

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A great deal of media attention has been given to the sub prime loan market and rising foreclosures as a result of lenders making loans to marginal borrowers. Interestingly, only 9% of existing loans would be characterized as sub prime and many of those borrowers are not headed to foreclosure.

The areas currently hardest hit as a result of the sub prime loan fall out and resulting foreclosures are those that have experienced significant new construction and in many cases over building. These tend to be areas where prices are more affordable, land is available/inexpensive, and the political climate is pro-growth.

To illustrate why, picture a developer who built a tract of 300 homes in a community and sold them a few years back. You can imagine a billboard in front of the development that read “Why rent when you can own? With no money down and a teaser rate on your loan you can have payments similar to what you are paying now in rent!” These billboards certainly worked because first time buyers flooded to these developments to realize the dream of home ownership while taking part in the double digit appreciation we have been enjoying for many years. (more…)

With all the negative media out there, it’s hard to remember that “all real estate is local,” and that falling prices bring with them real opportunities. It’s true, especially here in Santa Barbara.

Here are 10 reasons to invest in today’s market: (more…)