January real estate statistics are in for Folsom market

The Folsom real estate statistics are in for January 2011. These numbers come from Trendgraphix Inc.—a real estate market research company. So let’s see what we have.

First, for the visually oriented, I’ve included the graph showing the number of homes for sale, sold, and pended for each month from January 2010 through January 2011. These numbers are specifically for single family residences. Just drop me a line if you would like to see the numbers for a different kind of property (i.e., condo, lot, income property etc.), and I’ll get those to you within 24 hours.

As you'll see in the graph above, in January, 231 homes were listed for sale in Folsom. This number includes foreclosures, short sales, and regular sales. That number is down slightly from the previous month and up 36.7% from January 2010. Some 45 homes were sold in January, down a 15.1% from January 2010. However, a huge uptick in the number of homes that went pending (i.e., went into escrow): 91, which is up 68.5% from January 2010.

Interesting to note that at 91 homes in escrow, that’s the highest number in at least a year. Could it be buyers are responding to the still low interest rates?

Quick January 2010 numbers in Folsom

Price per square foot: $161.60

Days on market: 77

Months' Inventory: 5.1

Average Sold Price: $343K

Because distressed properties are such a large component of the current market and have a significant impact on the numbers, I’m including a numbers breakdown by type of sale:

Type of Listing	REO	Short Sale	Regular Sale
# for sale	39	78	114
# new listings	21	37	42
# pended	22	42	27
# sold	13	11	21
Avg. sold price	304K	378K	350K
Sold/list Diff. %	99	99	97
Days on market	35	142	69

REO = Bank-owned property

That’s it for today’s wrap up of the Folsom market numbers for January. Please verify all information independently before making a decision on a home purchase.

Interested in numbers for another zip code? Just let me know and I’ll send them offline.

all4now

Cheaper to buy than rent is latest word from Trulia

For anyone considering buying a home in 2011 in Sacramento, the news from Trulia—a major real estate search site— that it’s cheaper to buy than to rent around Sacramento is good news for prospective homebuyers—whether long-time renters or first-time homebuyers. According to a statement by Pete Flint, CEO and co-founder of Trulia, many former homeowners have flooded the rental market (as they have lost their homes to a short sale or foreclosure) and following the principles of supply and demand, the cost of renting has gone up.

How Trulia arrived at its rent vs. buy index

Trulia arrived at the index by comparing the median list price with the median rent on two-bedroom apartments, condos, and townhomes as of January 10, 2011. The index takes into account the total cost of homeownership compared with the total cost of renting.

Homeownership costs

The homeownership costs include mortgage principal and interest, property taxes, hazard insurance, purchase closing costs, homeowners association dues (if applicable), and private mortgage insurance (if required by the lender). The homeownership cost calculation also includes tax advantages from mortgage interest, property tax, and closing-cost deductions.

Rental costs

The calculations for total rental cost include rent and renters insurance.

The bottom line: a price-to-rent ratio of between 1 and 15 means that it’s much cheaper to buy than to rent in a particular city. And a ratio above 20 indicates that owning is much more costly than renting in a city.

So where does Sacramento ranks?

Sacramento ranked 7^th among the top 10 cities to buy versus rent with a price-to-rent ratio of 10.

For a change, it’s some good news for prospective homebuyers in Sacramento. all4now

Real Estate market snapshot today

Here is the quick Monday rundown on the current real estate market in Folsom and houses for sale here (as of February 7). These numbers reflect properties listed by a variety of broker members of our local MLS.

·         376—number of homes for sale (including short sales and bank-owned homes or REOs)

·         $299,00—median price of homes for sale

·         107—average days on the market

The numbers for the short sale listings:

·         191—number of short sales on the market

·         $272,000—median listing price

·         133—average days on the market

The numbers for the REO listings:

·         45—number of short sales on the market

·         $274,900—median listing price

·         46—average days on the market

The numbers tell the story. These numbers were pulled from MetroList, our local multiple listing service, yesterday afternoon. all4now

Home buying tip of the day

As you look for that perfect Folsom home, make sure to always have the following with you when you visit houses:

• a measuring tape (and pencil and pad) to mark down those room measurements
• a flashlight--Bank-owned homes especially may have no electricity to the house so it'll be darker later in the day and evening
• a compass so you can figure out what rooms will get sun/shade at what time of day

all4now

Shadow inventory of homes may take 4 years to clear

The latest from analysts at Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services is that it may take more than four years to clear the so-called “shadow inventory” of distressed homes that aren't yet on on the market. This could, S&P says, undermine real estate prices while the backlog clears.

“Shadow inventory” is defined as properties with borrowers who are 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments, properties currently or recently in foreclosure, or properties that are real estate owned (REOs).

The estimate of how long the backlog would take to clear is up 11 percent from the previous quarter and up 40 percent from a year ago. What’s interesting according to the article I saw on this is that the increase in the estimated time needed to clear the shadow inventory is due to the fact that it’s taking longer for lender to liquidate distressed properties, not because the number of distressed properties is growing, the S&P analysts say.

The good news, says S&P, is that the overall level of distressed loans continues to decline, and that loan-cure success rates (most often the result of loan modifications) have been improving since the second half of 2008.

An interesting statistic from the article is that although some 45-50% of the loans modified or cured in the fourth quarter of 2009 re-defaulted within the first year of modification, that's an improvement from the nearly 80% re-default rate on loans modified or cured during the first quarter of 2008.

I wasn’t able to get the number for the greater Sacramento area but will post those if I can get them. all4now

Some Recent Folsom Home Sales

Here are recent home sales in Folsom, as recorded by MetroList last week. These properties were listed and sold by various broker participants in the MLS. REO means bank-owned.

·         224 Wales Dr, 2 bed/2 bath, 1243 sq ft, sold 1/26/11 for $75K REO

·         2506 Esplanade Cir #2506, 3 bed/2 bath, 1313 sq ft, sold 1/27/11 for $175K Short Sale

·         364 Marsall Dr, 2 bed/2 bath, 1130 sq ft, sold 1/28/11 for $222K REO

·         113 Sierra Woods Cir, 3 bed/2 bath, 1194 sq ft, sold 1/25/11 for $224,900 REO

·         1463 Taupin Ct, 3 bed/2 bath, 1327 sq ft, sold 1/27/11 for $265K

·         1925 Broadford Dr, 3 bed/2 bath, 1827 sq ft, sold 1/28/11 for $278K REO

·         230 Silberhorn Dr, 3 bed/2 bath, 1757 sq ft, sold 1/25/11 for $293K Short Sale

·         1432 Haddington Dr, 3 bed/2 bath, 1973 sq ft, sold 1/26/11 for $375K

·         104 Gold Mine Ct, 3 bed/2 bath, 1843 sq ft, sold 1/25/11 for $365,250

·         1212 Fergusen Way, 4 bed/3 bath, 2347 sq ft, sold 1/27/11 for $377,500 Short Sale

·         127 Yankton St, 5 bed/3 bath, 2687 sq ft, sold 1/28/11 for $400K

Wondering about a recent sale or any current homes for sale in Folsom, drop me a line and I’ll look it up for you! Also, please verify all information independently before making a decision based on the above info. all4now

Savings from the Sun for Homeowners

Solar power is on track to supply household electricity at the same cost as power from the electric grid, so tell us the feds in a recent report. This positive news is the result of improved technologies. The report says that the cost of generating power from rooftop solar panels should drop from 21 cents per kilowatt hour in 2009 to 10 cents per kWh in 2015, which is the same rate that households are paying for electricity today. The report goes on to forecast that the price of solar power could go down to 6 cents per kWh by 2030, thereby saving households about $400 per year compared with today. That is good news indeed! Especially when you consider all that great sun our Folsom homes get most of the year. all4now