Are you looking to buy or lease a home? Or maybe you just want to see what's out there. There are several open houses taking place this weekend in Malibu and Topanga. For information on the open houses, including details about the homes and vacant properties as well as the schedule, go to the 4 Malibu Real Estate Partners Open House Gude. 

The millions of homeowners facing default on their mortgages will likely become renters once their home is foreclosed. Investment bank Morgan Stanleycrunched the numbers and said the boost to the multifamily segment, that arm of commercial real estate that includes apartment buildings, will most likely see a multibillion-dollar boost from the looming migration.

Analysts expect a drop in the U.S. homeownership rate to 60% in the coming years from 69% at its peak.

The rate tumbled to 65% from a decade ago, the Census Bureau reported this month. It's the largest drop in 70 years.

According to RealtyTrac, there have been 8.9 million homes lost to foreclosure since 2007, the height of the credit crisis. And there is more to come in the fallout. And there are an estimated 7.5 million households either in foreclosure or delinquent on the mortgage. With the majority of these borrowers forced to pay rent over the next five years as their credit heals, this would equal $72.7 billion in incremental rent payments instead of mortgage payments.

The government is moving ahead to take advantage of the increase in demand. It's currently developing strategies to rent more of the thousands of government-owned foreclosure properties.

The mortgage industry refutes this idea and is at work tackling its plethora of problems and shortcomings. They range from what some call overly restrictive lending standards on the origination side, a dormant private-label secondary market, and ongoing issues in servicing.

The government is changing its Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), making it easier for homeowners to refinance their underwater, high-interest mortgages.

Although HARP has helped more than 890,000 homeowners nationwide by reducing their monthly mortgage payments, there are still millions of homeowners who are too far underwater to participate.?

Under the new rules, homeowners who owe more than 125 percent of the market value of their homes will be allowed to refinance into new loans.?

The program also streamlines the refinancing process for homeowners who are current on their mortgage payments and reduces or removes fees that previously hindered them from refinancing.?

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also will reduce the fees they charged in the past to enable borrowers to better afford the new loans.  Among the fees that will be reduced or eliminated are those for appraisals, title insurance, and closing costs. ?

Fees also will be waived for some underwater borrowers who are refinancing into 20-year or shorter-term loans.?

HARP is only open to borrowers who are current on their payments for the past six months with no more than one missed payment in the past 12 months.  The loans must have been originally issued before May 31, 2009, and purchased by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

Pending home sales based on contract signings in September increased 6% from the year before, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The index is based on signed sales of existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops. The transactions have yet to close, making it a forward-looking projection from the trade group.

Pending home sales were down 4.6% from the month before, but that is a typical seasonal drop. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun blamed a combination of weaker consumer confidence and tighter requirements from banks.

The index showed the highest increase from last year in the Midwest, with pending sales there 12.3% higher than they were last year. The area, however, showed the sharpest monthly decrease at 6.2%.

Pending sales in the Northeast were 4% above the year before, the smallest increase.

Refinance applications and appraisal complications are causing home sale closings to slow from the typical 30 days to between 45 and 60 days, according to the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse survey released Monday.

The time to close is even longer for short sales and sales of foreclosed homes, which according to the survey, accounted for 44.4 percent of the market in September, down from 45.9 percent in August.

The survey of 2,500 real estate agents found that one major source of delays among short sales is mortgage origination preapprovals, which sometimes expire before all interested parties agree.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency, along with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, on Monday announced changes to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) to help more borrowers.??The program will continue to be available to borrowers with loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on or before May 31, 2009, with current loan-to-value (LTV) ratios above 80 percent. ??The new program enhancements address several other key aspects of HARP including:

Eliminating certain risk-based fees for borrowers who refinance into shorter-term mortgages and lowering fees for other borrowers;

Removing the current 125 percent LTV ceiling for fixed-rate mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac;

Waiving certain representations and warranties that lenders commit to in making loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac;

Eliminating the need for a new property appraisal where there is a reliable AVM (automated valuation model) estimate provided by the Enterprises; and

Extending the end date for HARP until Dec. 31, 2013, for loans originally sold to the Enterprises on or before May 31, 2009.

Fannie and Freddie plan to issue guidance with operational details about the HARP changes to mortgage lenders and servicers by Nov. 15. Since industry participation in HARP is not mandatory, implementation schedules will vary as individual lenders, mortgage insurers and other market participants modify their processes

(Bobby Lehmkuhl, Dan Ross, Jan Thompson, William Bowling)

The Malibu Association of Realtors leadership team traveled to San Jose recently for the California Association of Realtors board of directors and business meetings. The directors and CAR committees research and formulate policy on all areas affecting the business, professional practices and public policy involvement of California Realtors.

“The Realtors are particularly proud of successful sponsored legislation which will preclude lenders from seeking deficiencies from property owners when a lender accepts the terms of a ‘short sale’, thus giving property owners some security in difficult times,” according to MAR president Dan Ross.

The Malibu leaders were presented with an award from the Housing Affordability Fund for raising funds to provide more options for first time home buyers’ entry into homeownership. The fund distributes these resources through local association in the state who have submitted funding requests for local programs that address housing affordability and housing supply directly.

President-elect Bobby Lehmkuhl, president Dan ross, past president Jan Thompson and regional chair William Preston Bowling, accompanied by MAR executive Susan Manners, attended the premier trade show for California’s real estate industry while in San Jose. This annual professional development and networking meeting is designed specifically for California Realtors. Seminars are offered on every aspect of the business of real estate including multiple listings, technology, international real estate, land management, risk management and the current market. 

Are you looking to buy or lease a home? Or maybe you just want to see what's out there. There are several open houses taking place this weekend in Malibu and Topanga. For information on the open houses, including details about the homes and vacant properties as well as the schedule, go to the 4 Malibu Real Estate Partners Open House Guide. 

Heightened economic uncertainty contributed to a decrease in California home sales in September, according C.A.R. September sales and price report. However, September home sales posted higher on a year-to-year basis for the third consecutive month and remain at stable levels.

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California fell to a seasonally adjusted 487,940 units in September, down 2.1 percent from a revised 498,320 in August, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide.  However, September home sales were up 4.1 percent from the revised 468,700 units sold during the like period a year ago. 

September’s sales decline was not a surprise, given the run of economic events that occurred during the time these sales were initiated, such as the debt debate, weakened stock market, and pending changes to the conforming loan limi

The September statewide median price of an existing, single-family detached home sold in California was $287,440, down 3.2 percent from a revised $297,060 in August and down 8.3 percent from the $313,460 median price recorded for September 2010. 

Following a steep spike in August, foreclosure starts returned to levels more in line with prior months in September, and were below the numbers reached at the peak.  California has seen a drop in activity of 56 percent since its peak, from 58,623 Notice of Default filings in March of 2009 to 25,778 today.

Foreclosure sales were mixed in September, with declines in Arizona, California and Nevada, while Oregon and Washington both showed increases. Despite the declines, the percentage purchased by third parties, typically investors, was at or near peak levels. In California, third parties made up a record 27.4 percent of all sales last month.

California statistics:?

• Foreclosure starts declined 20.9 percent

?• Foreclosure sales declined 23.3 percent?

• Foreclosure timeframes declined 3.9 percent

More than 23,200 foreclosures in 2006 sat unsold until the second quarter of 2010 – more than four years later, according to a study from the data analytics firm CoreLogic.

Analysts studied the destinations of more 355,000 properties that hit foreclosure auctions in 2006. Investors bought about one-third of them at the courthouse steps, and the remaining 233,000 went back onto lenders' books as real estate owned.

Of those, 90%, or 210,000 homes, sold as REO to third-party buyers. Of these, half took six months to sell and 21% took more than one year to unload.

But 23,200 sat unsold for four years, CoreLogic found. These are properties that entered the foreclosure process before the system surpassed its maximum capacity in many states. REO sales have yet to peak, meaning the time banks and the U.S. government will have to hold these homes could go even longer.

What is known is that the longer the property sits, the more cash buyers end up with the property, often for steep discounts. For the 2006 REO that resold more the one year later, 55% went to cash investors, compared to 40% for the entire foreclosure stock that year.

More than 11,000 of the REO sales were resold three times over the next five years, and 70% were resold through cash transactions. CoreLogic said the dominance of cash for these so-called "churned" properties is consistent in later auctions.

For the 2006 REO sold to buyers who took out a mortgage, only 2% fell back into REO in the five years since.

Such stagnant pools of inventory have crippled any recovery in home prices. Most analysts predict even more depreciation in 2012. Billions in government initiatives such as the Neighborhood Stabilization Program and the Hardest Hit Fund went to help states and nonprofits resell vacant and abandoned foreclosures even as Republicans in the House moved to cut these programs.

But until the overall economy and employment improves, the inventory overhang will only widen.

The sale of properties repossessed through foreclosure may not peak until 2013, keeping home prices from a meaningful recovery for some time, analysts estimated Monday.

Nearly half of the more than 552,000 REO properties liquidated in the first half of 2011 were held by private banks. In the years ahead, the government — including the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — will begin taking a majority of the activity.

In 2013, REO sales could reach 1.48 million properties, according to estimates from Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts, a 10% increase from projected amount in 2012.

Most of the projected increase will come as the government begins to unload its backlog. The government-sponsored enterprises and HUD, analysts estimate, will liquidate roughly 595,000 properties in 2013 alone.

Total REO liquidations wouldn't drop below 1 million until 2015, according to BofAML.

The Obama administration began work last month developing new strategies for selling this mass of properties, which may involve renting more of them. TheFederal Housing Finance Agency is also working on a way to refinance more underwater borrowers to entice them from walking away.

Other analysts were skeptical of anyone who could predict accurately what the GSEs or Washington would do, especially after the elections in 2012.

Daren Blomquist at RealtyTrac, which monitors foreclosure filings across the country, said the sale of REO is on track to reach 825,000 by the end of 2011.

If half of the 800,000 mortgages currently somewhere in the foreclosure process and another half of the 1.5 million loans in serious delinquency end up REO, it could mean an additional, 1.15 million properties that would need to be liquidated — not including new foreclosures that enter the process, according to RealtyTrac.

Investors themselves, though, showed little confidence they would take on such a risk again. In fact, most are trying to keep the government involved in the housing market for the future, to keep risks as low as possible. Otherwise, foreign investors would flee.

While the estimates on how many REO will be sold in the future are extremely difficult to nail down, the size of the best projections share a common and threatening scale. Analysts said major refinancing schemes or new strategies for liquidating REO on a local level would need to be completed soon to rescue house prices from the still increasing pressure of mounting foreclosures.

National home sales and median price listings in September rose from a year ago with the home inventory down about 20%, according to multiple reports Thursday.

These positive signals were offset by a continued slight downward trend in home sales prices, down 3.3% from a year ago according to RE/MAX.

Home sales nationally went up 7.6% from September 2010.

Single-family home, condo, townhouse and co-op inventory was down 3.27% from August and down 20.09% from September last year, according toRealtor.com.

This year-over-year decrease could mean a return to seasonal patterns and higher prices in the coming months, though markets are still fragile and could weaken in bad economic conditions.

Data firm RealtyTrac said Wednesday that the decline in foreclosure filingsmay have hit bottom and that foreclosure activity will likely grow.

The shrinking for-sale inventory could also be due to homeowners waiting to list their homes during a 6-month leveling of list prices. The year-over-year median list price was up 1.6% in September at $190,000.

Home prices could fall up to 7% by the end of the 2012 first quarter, Barclays Capital said Friday in a report to clients.

Barclays also noted the worst-case scenario for a further home price collapse, where property value falls another 15 to 20% from current levels, is low.

Fannie Mae's recent survey of a sample pool of Americans found that most of those surveyed believe home prices will fall another 1.1% over the next year.

Home prices recently experienced a minor decline.

In August, home prices decreased 0.4% on a month-over-month basis, the first monthly decline in four months, according to CoreLogic.

Meanwhile, Clear Capital expects another home price dip is on the way.

Home prices rose nationally 3.5% in the third quarter over the previous quarter, according to the latest home data index from Clear Capital.

However, the company also predicts another minor decline in home prices for the fourth quarter of 2011, and a continued slide through the end of the first quarter of 2012.

View Property Website.

3003 Sequit Dr., Malibu, CA 90265

3B

2B

10,000 sq. ft. lot (apx)

Ocean & canyon views

Complete remodel in progress

In the El Nido neighborhood in Malibu

Coming to market soon. Be one of the first to see this home.

COMING SOON!
- Bank-Owned/REO

- Not in the MLS

- Craftsman-style home

- High ceilings in living room

- Formal dining area

- Kitchen with center island

- Family room with wood-burning fireplace

- Master suite with large walk-in closet 

- Master bath with dual sinks, separate tub & shower

- Den/bonus room with bathroom

- 3 bedrooms upstairs

- On cul-de-sac street

- Detached 2-Car Garage

- Large Lot

- Access to nearby hiking trails

- Close to freeway & beaches 

 

***View Property Website here.

***View Virtual Tour here.

 

 

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke before the Joint Economic Committee of Congress last week about what he sees as our true economic outlook. In this statement he avoided sugar-coating worrisome trends and instead made clear that "the recovery is close to faltering."

According to Bernanke, it has been three years since the beginning of the financial crisis, and while there have been improvements, such as manufacturing production rising 15 percent, a reduced U.S. trade deficit, and improved functionality in financial markets and banking, it is clear that the recovery is "less robust" than experts had hoped.

Bernanke noted, "The housing sector has been a significant driver of recovery from most recessions in the United States since World War II. This time, however, a number of factors--including the overhang of distressed and foreclosed properties, tight credit conditions for builders and potential homebuyers, and the large number of "underwater" mortgages (on which homeowners owe more than their homes are worth)--have left the rate of new home construction at only about one-third of its average level in recent decades."

In a slice of good news, however, private residential construction spending has risen 3.9 percent year over year, making for the fourth month of consecutive gains (0.7 percent gain in August) and the largest percentage gain since June of 2010.

The National Association of Home Builder's Eye on Housing reports, however, that "demand for new homes remains hampered by significant competition from distressed sales, tight lending standards and a weak labor market."

1. Wake up early. For the next week, get up a half an hour earlier that you normally do--and get going. If you get a few more things done, then get up even earlier the next week. Early in the morning is a great time to get work done because most of your associates have not started emailing, tweeting, IMing, or posting yet.

2. Read the headlines and watch the news. Not only should you know what is going on in the world, you will also be the first to recognize opportunities (if you followed #1) for you and your business--long before the competition has even had their first cup of coffee.

3. Send something to one person who can hire you or buy your product--something you promised to follow-up with, a quick email with a link to something relevant or a "Hey, just checking in to see how thing are going" email.

4. Touch base with an old friend or associate you haven't talked to in ages. Ask how they are, what are they working on and ask or suggest how you might help. You'll make their day.

5. Write a handwritten note to someone. Seriously. It is a lost art and makes quite an impression. There is always someone you can send a thank you note to--or you aren't doing things correctly.

Standard & Poor's Rating Services' estimate of the number of months needed to clear the supply of distressed homes on the market fell in the second quarter for the first time since mid-2009. The current estimate is 47 months, a five-month decline from the first-quarter estimate and the largest quarter-to-quarter drop since mid-2008. While the volume of distressed U.S. non-agency residential mortgages remained extremely high-$405 billion in the second quarter-it has declined every quarter since mid-2010. At the end of the first quarter, the estimated balance of shadow inventory was $433 billion. Also, each of the individual top-20 metropolitan statistical areas that S&P tracks reported lower months-to-clear estimates during the second quarter than the previous quarter.

Despite the improvement, distressed loans continue to loom over the housing market and threaten to further depress home prices. Low liquidation rates over the past two years allowed the shadow inventory to grow as distressed homes have remained tied up in foreclosure proceedings. The shadow inventory may continue to jeopardize the housing market's recovery until servicers are able to improve liquidation times. However, in that event, an influx of homes will likely enter the market, increasing supply and potentially driving prices down further.

S&P includes in its shadow inventory all outstanding properties whose borrowers are 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments, properties in foreclosure and properties that are real estate owned (REO). It also includes 70% of the loans that "cured" from being 90 days delinquent (i.e., loans that once again became current) within the last 12 months because cured loans are more likely to re-default. 

Are you looking to buy or lease a home? Or maybe you just want to see what's out there. There are several open houses taking place this weekend in Malibu and Topanga. For information on the open houses, including details about the homes and vacant properties as well as the schedule, go to the 4 Malibu Real Estate Partners Malibu & Topanga Open House List. 

The U.S. homeownership rate in 2010 fell to the lowest level in 70 years, dropping to 65.1%, down from 66.2% in 2000, according to data from the Census Bureau.

The decline came even as the nation added 15.8 million housing units, increasing the total housing inventory by 13.6%, the Census Bureau said Thursday.

Eleven states suffered declines of at least two percentage points in their homeownership rates, led by South Carolina, with a decrease of 2.88 percentage points.

The 10 states with the highest housing unit growth rates were in the West and South. After Nevada, Arizona clocked the second-largest gain, as its housing inventory rose by 29.9%, followed by Utah, with a 27.5% gain, and Idaho, with a 26.5% increase.

California had the most total housing units in 2010, as it did in 2000, with an inventory of 13.68 million units. Texas was next, with 9.98 million units, followed by Florida, which gained enough housing units to surpass New York.

Pending Home Sales are homes that have a purchase contract in place but have not yet closed.  The National Association of Realtors released their data for August and it showed a year-over-year annual improvement of 13.1%. 

When comparing August to July, pending home sales slipped but less than market forecasts.  Economists expected Pending Home Sales to decrease month-over-month by -1.8%.  The actual number was a little better at -1.2%. Hurricane Irene, which battered the Northeast at the end of the month, was likely a factor in the decline. 

Three of four regions throughout the United States saw declines in the number of contracts to purchase previously owned homes. The Northeast region experienced the largest loss of 5.8 percent as a result of significant disruption by Hurricane Irene, according to NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. Meanwhile, sales in Midwest and West also fell 3.7 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively. In contrast, a 2.6 percent gain in the South helped reduce the total loss of pending home sales in the month.