The last time I ran the market data regarding the number of months of inventory available, (approx. September, 2007), the $0-1 million price range had 10.9 months of inventory.

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As a person that bought a new home in 2007, I lied awake last night wondering if I made a mistake.  It’s not hard to second-guess oneself in the wake of all the negative national news, even when real estate is your business.  So this morning I went to my computer to check on the strength and velocity of our local market.  Looking at the key indicators, this is what I found:

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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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I bought my house in 1995 for a little over $350,000. Being in the business, I thought that I had made a good deal, but within 6 months, I think my house was worth around $25,000 less and I felt pretty sick. Today, 13 years later, my home is worth over $1,100,000, three times what I paid for it and I now I know that I made the right decision. In fact, when looking back, even if I would have paid $400,000 ($50,000 more than what it was worth), it would have been a smart purchase. You see, many of my clients ask me, when is the best time to buy a home considering what the market is like right now.

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In the past 30 days we have seen more activity in the market than in the past few months.  116 residential properties have gone into escrow leaving about a 6 month supply of homes for other buyers.  This is a significant reduction in inventory over the last few months.  What does this mean to buyers?  It means the time to act is now if you want to have negotiating power on your side.

If buying a home is in your list of “New Year’s Resolutions” here is a checklist of things you can do to get the process started:

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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…)

LAS VEGAS, November 13, 2007 - A modest recovery for existing-home sales is expected in 2008 as the impact of the credit crunch subsides, while pending home sales indicate near-term stability, according to the latest forecast released here today at the National Association of Realtors® Conference & Expo.

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the housing market will improve from a steady unleashing of pent-up demand, and from a wide abundance of safer mortgage products. “The level of pent-up demand reaching the market next year is a bit uncertain, and it is possible for even higher home sales activity than we’re forecasting if buyers regain their confidence about the long-term benefits of homeownership. Over the near term, home sales are likely to be fairly flat as the lingering impact of the credit crunch filters through the system through the end of the year.” (more…)