Orange County Bank Owned Home-Fullerton Vintage HOme

 Fullerton Vintage Home-Great Bank Foreclosure-Listed at $278,000

New to market this Fullerton Vintage is a bank owned home and is listed to sell quickly.  The home located at 3530 Oak in Fullerton offers 3 bedrooms and 1 bath.  The home is ready to move into but could use some updating making it a great opportunity for a first time buyer looking for a good price as well as an investor.  If you are interested in viewing this home, give us a call at 714-743-2112.

Fullerton is an excellent city ideally located in North Orange County with easy access to freeways.  Downtown Fullerton is a great entertainment center offering many bars and restaurants.  Fullerton offers a great education system from elementary through college including California State University Fullerton. 

Take advantage of the best Foreclosure search at http://www.ocmlshomefinder.com/search/foreclosure_search/ to find your next Fullerton Home. 

 

Orange County Buyers buy homes after Foreclosure

With the economic downfall in 2008 many home owners nationwide, as well as many Orange County Home owners fell behind on their mortgage and lost their homes to foreclosure.  This has continued for the past 4 years and we in the Orange County real estate market are still feeling the effects of these foreclosures.  During these past four years many home owners in trouble were told that they could foreclose or short sale their home and re-enter the Orange County real estate market after some time and some credit repair.  A recent article in the Wall Street Journal, details exactly how that is now occuring in real estate markets around the nation. 

The article details  multiple buyers who have recently gone onto buy homes after either foreclosing or short selling their home.  These buyers are a great testament that buyers can fall on hard times yet come back and own their home.  Many current Orange County home owners may find themselves in similar circumstances and be unsure if they will be able own a Orange County Home again if they lose their home to foreclosure or short sale.  This article should be a great asset for those home owners considering their options. 

There are many options for home buyers looking to buy after a foreclosure, the article details one fo the most common solutions as using FHA Financing to buy a home.  FHA loan limits in Orange County are currently over $700,000 and only require 3.5% down payment.  FHA Financing provide a great option for those having a foreclosure or short sale in their past.  The article goes on to detail that FHA guidelines require a 3 year benchmark for buyers to qualify for a FHA loan.    In order to qualify a buyer must have re-established some credit and show they are currently paying their bills. 

If you have experienced a foreclosure in the past or if you are currently considering your options for your Orange County home, this should be a great indicator that there are options after foreclosure or short sale.

 

Habitat For Humanity offers Orange County Affordable Homes

Habitat for a Humanity offers New Construction affordable housing in Orange County.  The first of these propertes is currently under construction and available for sale in Santa Ana, CA at 1029 South McLean Drive.  Habitat is offering this brand new home through its Work Force Home program which makes home available for moderate income families.  This is great opportunity to live in Orange County in a brand new home.

Habitat for Humanity is a non profit Chrstian housing organization which provides housing all over the world.  Their vision is, "A world where everyone has a decent place to live".  Habitat will deliver up to 16 homes in Orange County through its Work Force Homes program.  These homes will be in Santa Ana and Cypress and will be available for moderate income families.  The income restiction is based on not making more than 120% of the Orange County Median income, check for specifics on the link above to Work Force Homes. 

The new home at 1029 South McLean in Santa Ana will be the first property available from Habitat.  It will be a 4 bedroom 2 1/2 bathroom home with 1,494 square feet.  It is currently listed at $421,700 and should be available for occupancy in January 2013.  The home will be constructed with certified green building materials and will also include brand new Energy Star Appliances. 

For more specifics on this property including the income limits you can call Nicole Pompey at 714-743-2112.  Also you can search for this and all Santa Ana homes here.

 

Bolsa Chica Development Approved after 10 years-Huntington Beach, CA

 Huntington Beach, CA- The California Coastal Commission recently approved a 111 home development in the Bolsa Chica area of Huntington Beach.  The development gained approval after a 10 year process with the California Coastal Commission.  This new development will add some great beach close inventory of Huntington Beach homes to the area.

Shea Homes will develop and market the 111 home development but will need to meet some 26 conditions prior to obtaining final approval.  Real more about the process at the OC register.  The development will include some 23 acres of open space and will include trails connecting the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve and 8.5 acres of the Wetlands. 

The development will be named Parkside Estates and will join other Bolsa Chica Developments such as the 68 acre Brightwater development as well as two other smaller developments in the area, The Ridge and Goodell.  This development will add to the other great Huntington Beach HOmes in the area.  Check back for more updated information as it becomes available.

Orange County New Homes -Toll Brothers announce Lake Forest Development

Toll Brothers a major luxury home developer recently plans to move forward on a 2,000 plus home development located in Lake Forest.  The development, Baker Ranch is located is located in the city of Lake Forest in South Orange County.  The master planned develoment will include both single family homes as well as some apartments. 

Lake Forest is a bedroom community located in South Orange County and offers an ideal locattion for accessing all that Orange County has to offer.  It is located with easy access to the 241 Toll Road to the north and the 5 Freeway to the South.   Both of these freeways provide easy access to the shopping and entertainment hubs of Irvine, Costa Mesa and Newport Beach.  Lake Forest is home to many large employers including Wet Seal and Oakley, as well as being close to the major employment hubs of Orange County. 

Baker Ranch will sit upon 387 acres located just South of the 241-Toll road and west of Bake Parkway.  Upon Completion Baker Ranch will offer more than 2,000 homes.  The master planned development is ideal with is easy access to the 241 Toll road and close proximity to the Foothill Towne Center which is located just north of the 241 and offers many shopping and dining options.   

Toll Brothers is known as one the best luxury home builders in the nation.  The fact that they are moving forward on a such a large scale development shows their confidence in the luxury home market in Orange County and Lake Forest.  Toll Brothers has recently started grading for the development but have not released more detailed timelines for Baker Ranch.  Check back for more information on the Baker Ranch and all Lake Forest Homes for Sale.

Aliso Viejo bank Owned Condo Just Reduced $50,000

  Aliso Viejo bank owned condo just reduced $50,000 for fast sale.  This beautiful condo located in the desirable Audubon developement in Aliso Viejo offers two bedroom, two and half baths.  It offers a great location close to Newport Beach as well as just minutes to many Orange County Beaches. 

Aliso Viejo offers a great location close to all Orange County has to offer including shopping and entertainment at Fashion Island in Newport Beach and Irvine Spectrum in Irvine.  It is also close to the hiking trails in Laguna Canyon.

Originally listed at $359,900 it was recently reduced to $309,900 for a fast sale.  This condo also offers special low down Homepath financing.  Search for this and other Aliso Viejo Foreclosures Here.   Call us today for a private showing at 714-743-2112

 

Ocean Ranch, Laguna Niguel Bank Owned

 Beautiful Ocean Ranch View home recently came on the market as a bank owned home.  This is not your average Orange County Foreclosure, this home sits behinds the guarded gates of the prestigious community of Ocean Ranch in Laguna Niguel.  Offering a incredible ocean view this large 6 bedroom home offers 6,780 square feet of living space.  The home sits on a large estate lot and offers a pool to enjoy the great Southern California weather. 

Ocean Ranch is well located just minutes from the beaches of Laguna Beach and dana Point.  Check out this and other Laguna Niguel bank owned homes.

This beautiful Ocean Ranch foreclosures is currently listed at $1,782,575.  Call us for your own private showing 714-469-8198.

Orange County First Time Buyers and Multiple Offers

Many First time buyers in Orange County have recently had the experience of running into multiple offers in their home search.  This can be somewhat frustrating for first time home buyer, especially.  In fact many some times find it hard to believe, but it is certainly true.  There is a currently great demand for Orange County homes and condos especially in the price range for the first time home buyer in Orange County. 

The demand is due to the fact that Orange County Prices have come down significantly and interest rates are at Historical lows.  Prices for both homes and condos are at more affordable levels then they were at the peak of prices in 2006-2007.  The biggest driver of demand is the fact that mortgage interest are at historical lows and many buyers are looking to take advantage of these low rates. 

With this high demand there is unfortunately very little supply, this is for a few reasons including the fact that banks are foreclosing on homes at a very slow rate and prefer short sales to foreclosures.  While the banks prefer short sales to foreclosures but are taking a very long time to process these short sales, often taking 6 to 9 months to process.  Add to this that there are very few traditional sellers, the result is very limited inventory for many buyers and therefore often looking at multiple offers. 

Now the question of how to be successful in purchasing your new home or condo in this market.  The first thing is to work an experienced agent like the ones at www.OCMLSHomeFinder.com.  Working with an agent who is experience with the market will help you know which homes to pursue and which ones to shy away from.  The second thing to do is get pre-approved with a strong local lender, without a pre-approval your offer will not even be considerd.  But it is also important to be approved with a local lender who is well known with the real estate community.  When it comes to a multiple offer situation, the listing agent is going to more likely to recommend an offer with a lender which he or she is familiar with and one which they know will perform.  The third thing is be patient but act fast, be patient because you may miss out on one or two properties.  Do not get discouraged, just know the right property may pop up tomorrow or the next week and when it does you need to take action quickly.  If you find a home you like make a strong offer and possibly avoid a multiple offer situation. 

Just know that multiple offers on the lower end first time buyer market in Orange County of $250,000 to $400,000 are the norm and will be here for the foreseeable future.   

 

Santa Ana Real Estate Market Update

Santa Ana has been one of the most active real estate markets in Orange County, mainly due to its overall low price when compared to other areas within Orange County.  Looking at the sale for the most recent quarter ending March 31, 2012, Santa Ana saw a total of 426 homes sold.  These 426 homes were basically the same as the same 90 days last year, when there were 430 Santa Ana Homes sold. Distressed sales (bank owned and short sales) still dominate the market accounting for 229 (104 bank owned/125 short sales) of the 426 sales or 54% as compared to last year when bank owned homes (118) and short sales(146) accounted for 264 or 61% of the total Sales.

Values in Santa Ana have remained relatively flat as the average price for a detached single home in Santa Ana was $343,464 in 2012 vs $337,097 in 2011.  When looking at the price per square foot, an even better indicator of value, the most recent 90 days produced an average price sq ft of $234.32 vs $235.22 in 2011.  

While values appear to have flatten out in Santa Ana there is still a great deal of Inventory still on the market. Currently there are 281 Santa Ana Listings in the local MLS.  Of these 281 listings only 19 properties are banked owned homes while 87 are Santa Ana Short sales.  When including all Santa Ana short sale, meaning all active as well those which are in some stage of negotiation the number of short sales in Santa Ana balloons to 545 total short sales in Santa Ana

 

Downtown Huntington Beach Home Sales

Downtown Huntington Beach, a small sub market of the overall Huntington Beach Real Estate market saw 31 sales in the first quarter of 2012 ending March 31, 2012.  This compared to 19 sales for the same period one year ago.  The first quarter tends to be a slower time for real estate sales overall when compared to the 2nd and 3rd quarter.  The 31 sales for the Downtown Huntington Area sold at an average of $899,581 with an average per square foot price of $391.44 per square foot as compared to the prior year when these numbers were $762,263 average sales price and $410.71 per square foot. 

These numbers are comparable to the other beach communities, were we are seeing higher priced homes being sold.  The data from one year ago included many condos and smaller homes with few larger homes at the higher price point being sold. The most recent quarter indicates a more equal balance between the lower and higher end.  The good news is that the increased sales, 31 homes this year vs 19 homes in the same period last year, is coming in the from more sales in the higher end indicating that the higher end market is coming back slightly.

Currently there are 39 active homes (47 when including short sales being negotiated) in for sale in Downtown Huntington Beach.  This number will increase as we enter the spring and summer selling seasons. 

There is still a high number of short sales and reos in the market, these distressed properties account for 11 of the current 47 properties for sale.  When looking at the recent sales they accounted for 9 of the most recent 31 sales vs 9 of the 19 homes sold last year.  This is a good indicator of the bank's strategy of manipulating the market by only releasing limited inventory through short sale or reo.  The increase in sales came from standard sales, meaning people moving up, moving out or just moving, which is good for the market.