California: foreign-born population and homeownership.

California, the most popular State for immigrants...  When I came here first in 1970 the mentality was still very much like: "Go West, young man, go West" and a lot of people were arriving from the East to start anew.  There was a lot of space available, still, right outside your door.

 

What is the situation now?

 

 

Well, it is true that historically, California has been the popular destination for immigrants. Currently, about one quarter of the nation’s immigrants live in California. The top three countries of origin for the foreign born entering the U.S are Mexico, China and India.

However, California’s share of incoming immigrants has been declining since 1990 due to a rise in state bills related to immigration, and the settlements of new immigrant arrivals into different states with historically low concentrations of immigrants.

 

Length of stay and region of origin are significant factors in determining homeownership rate among international buyers. Those who have stayed longer, and have migrated from Europe and other parts of North America are more likely to own a home.

Homeownership rate among the foreign born population is 47.9 percent in California, much less than the rate among those born in the U.S (58.1 percent). When breaking down the foreign born population, naturalized citizens are twice as likely to own a home compare to those who are not (63 percent for naturalized citizens versus 28 percent who are not a U.S citizen).

 

One in five REALTORS® has worked with an international buyer in the past year.

The share of international buyers has slightly increased from 5.3 percent in 2010 to 5.8 percent in 2011.

In 2012, California accounted for 11 percent of home purchases by international clients, second behind Florida (26 percent).

The largest group of international clients in California is from Canada.

The median home price of foreign clients was $505,000, which is double the median price of single family homes in the state ($291,000)

 

The California Association of Realtors has published a new study on the subject.

Full study url:   http://www.car.org/3550/pdf/econpdfs/BusinessDataForInternationalRE_Final.pdf  

 

Thanks for reading,

 

Francis
Silicon Valley Real Estate

Smart stats

Reasons your neighbors hate you...

Well...  a little bit of humor mixed with some sound advice and remarks.. From Lucy O'Neill at the Improvement Center.

Francis
Silicon Valley real estate


9 reasons neighbors hate you
Courtesy of: ImprovementCenter.com

An unbalanced market...

As we advance deeper inside the year 2013, the sales figures start showing how much the market has been ... to put it mildly, unbalanced.
Here in this statistical recap coming from the CAR (California Assocation of Realtors) one can see how much the various Counties in the Bay Area have appreciated from March 2012 to March 2013.

Even though this is not exactly the 1-year appreciation, but only the jump from one month in 2012 to the same month in 2013, it certainly gives a good idea of the appreciation we are going to see at the end of the year, because in fact it is pretty much the same story month after month.

It sure is a steep rate of appreciation.  What do you think? Are we looking at a bubble, or does it reflect accurately the health of the local economy?

Thank you for reading,
Francis
Silicon Valley Real Estate

Smart stats

FTC - Tips on ID theft

Federal Trade Commission posts new video to help identity theft victims

The Federal Trade Commission has a new video designed to help facilitators who assist consumers in repairing their identity. Helping Victims of Identity Theft is the latest addition to the FTC’s library of resources that explain not only how to recognize identity theft, but also how to report it and repair the damage it can cause. The FTC gets more complaints about identity theft each year than any other consumer issue, and estimates that nine million consumers become identity theft victims each year.
The video promotes the Guide for Assisting Identity Theft Victims, a tool for advocates, social workers, attorneys, and others who work to help resolve the issues identity theft causes. The Guide is a complement to the do-it-yourself instructions in Taking Charge:  What To Do if Your Identity is Stolen.

When time comes to purchase a house or refinance, it is wise to double check one's credit reports to make sure no accounts have crept up without our knowledge.

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate
Local market: Smart graphs

The effect of interest rate change...

It is easier to visualize what happens to a mortgage payment when the interest rates go up or down.
The visual below is pretty good at showing it, I thought:

Looking for some good resources for lenders? Do not hesitate to call on me,

Thank you,

Francis
Silicon Valley real estate
Local market: Smart graphs

Note: our next free E-Waste collection and shredding event will be on: Sat. 4/6/13, at our Coldwell Banker office at 161 S. San Antonio Rd, Los Altos. Times: E-Waste 9am to 4 pm. Shredding: 10 am to 2 pm.

Condos are "back" !... and other real estate surprises

Bay area condos’ tight supply has buyers scrambling.
And prices are going up a lot as a result.

Across the Bay Area, buyers are fighting for a limited supply of new and existing condos.

Several factors are combining to create this situation:

  -  investors have already snapped up many foreclosures and short sales and are renting them out.

  -  homeowners who might sell in a typical market are either still on the sidelines watching prices rise or are underwater and can’t afford to sell (much fewer now than yesterday!),

  -  those homeowners who do want to move up cannot do so, as they question rightfully their ability to purchase a "replacement property" in this one-sided market (the lack of bridge loans does not help),

  -  demand has been growing, because of the good job market in the bay area, and also - interesting trend - because many buyers who went through short sales or foreclosures are becoming homeowners again, thanks in part to loans from the Federal Housing Administration.

  -  finally, as housing starts have risen in the past year or so, home sales haven’t kept up. The gap suggests that builders are overwhelmingly building for renters, not buyers.  This trend is better studied in this article by Nin-Hai Tseng of CNN.

Investors as well as builders did not fail to notice the significant increase in rental prices that we witnessed in the past 2 years (locally certainly, but nationwide too).  In a way, we can see a small part of this phenomenon unravelling in my last blog about the San Antonio shopping center, where for the time being the only residential units being built there are for rent.

Need to know the value of your condo?  Do not hesitate to contact me,

Thanks for reading, as always!
Francis

Silicon Valley real estate

Trends: Local prices and graphs.

Coming soon: The Peninsula French Fair  - Art, food, and good company!!
Sat. March 23rd, all day.

California - a history of home prices...

California, a history of home prices...

 

Click to read better

What a trip! Difficult to imagine, if you purchased your home in the 70's, what it would be like today.

Did you buy your house in that decade?  what's your experience: how much is your home worth today?

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate

Trends: Local prices and graphs.

Coming soon: The Peninsula French Fair
Sat. March 23rd

Silicon Valley Luxury Home Sales - up 54% from year ago, Coldwell Banker residential brokerage reports

SiliconValley Luxury Home Sales Up 54% from Year Ago, Coldwell Banker ResidentialBrokerage Reports

by cbwesternregion

Luxury home sales in Silicon Valley surged 54 percent last month from the same period a year ago, according to a new report by Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, the Bay Area's leading provider of luxury real estate services.

The figures are based on Multiple Listing Service data of all homes sold for more than $1.5 million last month in Santa Clara County.

A total of 113 homes sold for more than $1.5 million in December, up from 73 in December 2011. The median sale price of a luxury home closing last month was down 7.8 percent from a year ago to stand at $2,019,500.

On a monthly basis, sales in December were down slightly from November's level of 121 transactions, but the median sale price was up 6.8 percent from November's median of $1.89 million.
Other key indicators for the luxury market improved last month from the same period a year ago. There were 58 sales over $2 million compared to 33 a year ago, and 20 sales over $3 million versus six a year ago. Homes also sold faster and sellers received a higher percentage of their asking price on average.

“The luxury market in Silicon Valley closed out 2012 the way it began, with healthy sales and strong buyer interest," said Rick Turley, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in the Bay Area.
Turley noted that some of the increase in sales could be due to luxury homeowners deciding to sell before the expected increase in the capital gains tax rate took effect in January. Additionally, demand remained strong from employees of Silicon Valley technology companies with stock option money to invest.

Some key findings from this month’s Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage luxury report:

• The most expensive sale in Silicon Valley last month was a three-bedroom, two-bath approximately 3,200-square-foot home in Palo Alto that sold for $6.75 million;
• Palo Alto boasted the most luxury sales with 33, followed by Los Altos with 31, Saratoga with 21, and Los Gatos with 14;
• Homes sold in an average of 58 days, down from 65 days a year ago but up from 50 days the previous month;
• Sellers received an average of 101 percent of their asking price, up from 97 percent a year ago and the same as the previous month.

The Silicon Valley Luxury Housing Market Report is a monthly report by Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, a specialist in high-end real estate sales. Through its internationally renowned Coldwell Banker Previews® program, Coldwell Banker is recognized around the world for its expertise in the luxury housing market.

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage serves Santa ClaraCounty with 21 offices from Palo to Hollister.

Thanks for reading!
Francis

Silicon Valley real estate
Local market: Smart graphs

PS: coming soon: The French Fair, in Palo Alto.  March 23rd, 2013