Local Real Estate News

Why Borrowers Default - Interesting Reading

I saw this on a blog on the Wall Street Journal, but a recently released paper by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta looked at loan defaults on loans with a high mortgage payment to income ratio, and found that rising interest rates DID NOT significantly correlate to default rates. The two main indicators... Read more »

The Market Report - June 2009

I send my clients a monthly market update and thought I’d share it with the blogosphere. If you agree and think that I’m a genius, please comment below. If you disagree and think I’m an idiot, keep your thougths to yourself. You can send me an email to subscribe to your city of  interest... Read more »

Pendings, Applications and Multiple Offers all UP

Fellow contributor sent this to me, and I thought is was worth sharing. I’ll have Administrator Kevin re-post this under his authorship when he has a minute…. We are finally seeing seeing a little sunlight through the economic gloom, both nationally and locally. Take a look at these new statistics,... Read more »

Buydowns and the Bottom

If you were in the market to buy a $2,000,000 home home in the Bay Area, would it make a differnce to you if the monthly investment was less than $5,000 with a 30% down payment?   And I’m not just talking about the mortgage payment, I am talking about complete, tax adjusted cash flow including... Read more »

Change, Logic and Money

January is a month typically filled with many things inspirational, and I must say that January 2009 appears exceptional.  In listening to Obama’s inaugural speech on Tuesday, my own interpretation was, “The power of change begins with me.  With you.  The sooner we all believe that we can change... Read more »

Will a short sale hurt my credit score?

When I meet with homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage are maybe behind on payments and have no equity in their home, we always discuss their options when it comes to avoiding foreclosure. We usually get through my report and if it appears that their only option is to sell their house... Read more »

Mortgage Mania 26 - …And Henry Giveth Again

You would have to be living under a rock to have missed this today, so here is a newsflash for all you subterranian dwellers. Henry Paulson’s latest bailout plan now consists of borrowing $800 Billion from The Fed to buy up mortgage assets, consumer credit card debt and car loans. In his article,... Read more »

Mortgage Mania 25 - Now What?

Henry giveth, and Henry taketh away . . . When Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson asked Congress for $750 Billion (yes, that’s with a B) financial bailout package, the justification was to buy up distressed mortgage assets so that banks would start lending again, and hopefully the epidemic of foreclosures... Read more »

McCain’s debate night bombshell

Did you see the debate last night? During one of the questions about the economy and the financial crisis, McCain dropped a bombshell! When Tom Brokaw asked about what needs to be done to help the housing market, McCain suggested that Government should buy back all these defaulted loans and then give... Read more »

Let’s End The Housing Crisis Here And Now … A Modest Proposal For How To Spend The $700BN

Even us “glass half-full” types have to admit the news these days is bad.  Any day Congress passes a $700BN and has to tag on only another couple billion or so of Christmas ornaments to get it passed, well, on that day, you know things were urgent, and they had to act fast.  Wooden arrow... Read more »

Real Estate Industry News

Buydowns and the Bottom

If you were in the market to buy a $2,000,000 home home in the Bay Area, would it make a differnce to you if the monthly investment was less than $5,000 with a 30% down payment?   And I’m not just talking about the mortgage payment, I am talking about complete, tax adjusted cash flow including... Read more »

Change, Logic and Money

January is a month typically filled with many things inspirational, and I must say that January 2009 appears exceptional.  In listening to Obama’s inaugural speech on Tuesday, my own interpretation was, “The power of change begins with me.  With you.  The sooner we all believe that we can change... Read more »

Which Job Would Be More Frustrating: Social Media Manager at NAR, or Clothing Manager at a Nudist Colony?

I’d say it’s a toss-up.  At least at the nudist colony there might be some, uh, ancillary job benefits, while the NAR position would require moving to Chicago.  And that’s just a start. Alerted by several folks, including those at NAR Wisdom, about NAR’s new “Social Media... Read more »

The Tweet-Cops — Law Enforcement’s Use of Social Media

Despite being a late adopter of technology generally, the real estate industry has embraced social media better than most industries have, and arguably behind only politics and technology.  Here’s an interesting use of social media from a completely different industry:  law enforcement. Joanne... Read more »

McCain’s debate night bombshell

Did you see the debate last night? During one of the questions about the economy and the financial crisis, McCain dropped a bombshell! When Tom Brokaw asked about what needs to be done to help the housing market, McCain suggested that Government should buy back all these defaulted loans and then give... Read more »

Are Digital Cameras And PDA’s Really The “Latest In Advanced Technology”? That’s What CAR Thinks!

From the “What decade are we in?” department, comes this choice gem of a promotional email from our good friends at the California Association of Realtors.  They’re running an Expo next week, and a promotional email just arrived in my inbox, from which I quote: Don’t miss this opportunity... Read more »

Let’s End The Housing Crisis Here And Now … A Modest Proposal For How To Spend The $700BN

Even us “glass half-full” types have to admit the news these days is bad.  Any day Congress passes a $700BN and has to tag on only another couple billion or so of Christmas ornaments to get it passed, well, on that day, you know things were urgent, and they had to act fast.  Wooden arrow... Read more »

And Another One Bites The Dust…

Apparently at least a handful of government financial regulatory employees were doing something today other than figuring out how much money Wall Street needs to keep from further imploding… The New York Times reports that JP Morgan Chase has taken over troubled lender Wamu. What next? SHARETHIS.addEntry({... Read more »

What’s Happening In This Market? A Liberal Dose Of Mixed Metaphors To Help Us Understand It

Movies.  Shoes.  Phases.  What do they have in common?  All have been recently used as metaphors describing the economy or predictions of where the economy is going. On the day that the Fannie and Freddie s$#@ hit the fan, Sherry Chris of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate quoted Realogy CEO Alex... Read more »

See Tim Ferriss Speak in San Francisco. Discount Code BIZSCY148

Hello ladies & gents I know this has nothing to do with staging But many of you who read my blogs know I am passionate about technology and its application to small businesses. My business certainly has benefited from technology tremendously and I would not have found the success that I have without... Read more »

Redwood City

$2,395,000 :: 439 Lakeview Wy, Redwood City CA, 94062
2 Jul 2009 at 6:39am

$968,800 :: 3793 Red Oak Wy, Redwood City CA, 94061
2 Jul 2009 at 3:21am

$299,000 :: 329 Dumbarton Av, Redwood City CA, 94063
1 Jul 2009 at 3:28pm

Mountain View Updates

$799,000 :: 2543 Mardell Wy, Mountain View CA, 94043
26 Jun 2009 at 8:01pm

$1,235,000 :: 1900 Orangetree Ln, Mountain View CA, 94040
26 Jun 2009 at 8:48am

$1,285,000 :: 13400 Pastel Ln, Mountain View CA, 94040
26 Jun 2009 at 4:54am

Menlo Park Updates

Julie Wong is now following you on Twitter!
1 Jul 2009 at 9:39pm

$1,825,000 :: 1080 Deanna Dr, Menlo Park CA, 94025
1 Jul 2009 at 9:44am

$3,895,000 :: 1275 Santa Cruz Av, Menlo Park CA, 94025
30 Jun 2009 at 11:52pm

Palo Alto Updates

$1,199,000 :: 440 Monroe Dr, Palo Alto CA, 94306
2 Jul 2009 at 6:05am

$1,295,000 :: 2340 Dartmouth St, Palo Alto CA, 94306
1 Jul 2009 at 4:55am

$1,435,000 :: 1837 Bryant St, Palo Alto CA, 94301
30 Jun 2009 at 1:38pm

Atherton Updates

$2,495,000 :: 54 Magnolia Dr, Atherton CA, 94027
29 Jun 2009 at 4:00am

$5,295,000 :: 82 Atherton Av, Atherton CA, 94027
27 Jun 2009 at 8:05pm

$14,200,000 :: 76 Almendral Av, Atherton CA, 94027
27 Jun 2009 at 1:02am

Los Altos Updates

$1,198,000 :: 136 Pasa Robles Av, Los Altos CA, 94022
2 Jul 2009 at 3:09pm

$2,395,000 :: 102 N Springer Rd, Los Altos CA, 94024
2 Jul 2009 at 5:59am

$2,595,000 :: 253 Fremont Av, Los Altos CA, 94024
30 Jun 2009 at 3:22am

Los Altos Hills Updates

$2,194,900 :: 12490 Corbetta Ln, Los Altos Hills CA, 94022
2 Jul 2009 at 4:04am

$3,995,000 :: 23641 Camino Hermoso Dr, Los Altos Hills CA, 94024
25 Jun 2009 at 8:36pm

$4,950,000 :: 27820 Elena Rd, Los Altos Hills CA, 94022
25 Jun 2009 at 8:00pm

Portola Valley Updates

$3,195,000 :: 1065 Westridge Dr, Portola Valley CA, 94028
1 Jul 2009 at 8:44am

$1,695,000 :: 281 S Castanya Wy, Portola Valley CA, 94028
26 Jun 2009 at 6:52am

$2,949,000 :: 245 Shawnee Ps, Portola Valley CA, 94028
22 Jun 2009 at 3:29am

Woodside Updates

$3,795,000 :: 1450 Bear Gulch Rd, Woodside CA, 94062
2 Jul 2009 at 4:38am

$1,648,000 :: 35 Skywood Wy, Woodside CA, 94062
1 Jul 2009 at 9:15am

$695,000 :: 633 Southdale Wy, Woodside CA, 94062
29 Jun 2009 at 3:56am

San Carlos Updates

$550,000 :: 1651 Alameda, San Carlos CA, 94070
2 Jul 2009 at 3:21am

$650,000 :: 965 Chestnut St, San Carlos CA, 94070
1 Jul 2009 at 10:15am

$1,075,000 :: 1805 White Oak Wy, San Carlos CA, 94070
1 Jul 2009 at 9:35am

Belmont Updates

$595,000 :: 1141 Elmer St, Belmont CA, 94002
29 Jun 2009 at 11:59am

$920,000 :: 2506 Coronet Bl, Belmont CA, 94002
29 Jun 2009 at 10:08am

$725,000 :: 323 Chesterton Av, Belmont CA, 94002
29 Jun 2009 at 7:53am

Other Cities

Coming soon!