Northern California

Lake County Residential Market Statistics for July 2015

August 26, 2015 by Rick White

For Release: August 12, 2015

Distressed Sales Dwindling in Lake County Market

LAKEPORT (Aug 12) – The Lake County Association of Realtors® (LCAOR) reported that distressed sales, homes sold after foreclosure or for less than what was owed, declined to 6.42% of July sales for single family residences. At one time during the recent recession distressed sales made up over 70% of the residential sales in the county. “It is good to see homeowners getting back above water,” commented LCAOR President Yvette Sloan. “With the market returning to a more normal state people feel more comfortable about purchasing a home.”

The median sales price for July rose to $211,000 up slightly from the June median price of $209,900. The July 2015 median sales price was 25.6% higher than the July 2014 median sales price of $168,000. The number of units fell from 109 sold in June to 82 units in July. Year over year, July 2015 compared to July 2014, the number of units sold increased by 3.8%.

On the financing front, cash buyers accounted for about 21% of the deals, which was down from 37.6% of the deals in June and down from 39.2% in July, 2014. Nearly 44% of the sales used conventional loans to finance the sales. FHA and CalVet/Vet loans each made up 9.76% of financing of sales.

Inventory levels rose to six (6) months of inventory after dipping to four (4) months in June. July 2014 had six (6) months of inventory also. Six months of inventory is considered “normal” for the real estate market.

Looking ahead to August sales Yvette Sloan noted, “At this point it is difficult to tell if the Rocky and Jerusalem fires will have an effect on the market. Insurance carriers are waiting for containment of the fires before issuing new policies and that could slow things down temporarily.”

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE

Lake County – July 2015

Median price: $211,000
Median days to sell: 90
Units Sold: 82

Lake County – June 2015

Median price: $209,900
Median days to sell: 61
Units Sold: 109

Lake County – July 2014

Median price: $168,000
Median days to sell: 56
Units Sold: 79

Lake County Association of REALTORS® … Helping REALTORS® to improve the consumer experience. LCAOR offices are located in Lakeport, CA.

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: California, Lake County, Market Report, Northern California, Real Estate, Real Estate Information

Homes take a 25% Jump in median price for Lake County for March 2015.

April 20, 2015 by Rick White

The Lake County Association of Realtors just posted the statistics for March 2015. Prices rose by 25%

Here is the report:

Home Sale Prices Increase by Twenty Five Percent

LAKEPORT (April 17) – The Lake County Association of Realtors® (LCAOR) reported that the median sales price of single family residences for Lake County rose from $180,000 in February 2015 to $224,000 in March, a 24.44% increase. Like sales in March 2014 had a median sales price of $155,000 showing a 44.5% increase when comparing year to year sales. Fluctuations in median pricing on a month to month basis can vary widely because of the limited number of sales however the trend has been on the upswing since December of 2014. The median sales price for all of 2014 was $169,000 compared to $175,000 for the first three months of 2015.

Fifty two (52) units sold in March compared to 43 in February for a 20.9% increase.

In March 2014 the number of units selling was 51. Inventory levels remained relatively the same at 7.1 months of inventory in March and 7.4 months of inventory in February. The months of inventory in March 2014 was 5.6 indicating that there are more homes available this year than last year.

“Realtors are reporting that the activity and interest in buying a home has picked up,” stated LCAOR President Yvette Sloan. “Interest rates are still attractive and the ability to get a loan has improved.”

Mortgage rates moved upward in March, with the 30-year, fixed mortgage interest rate averaging 3.77 percent, up from 3.71 percent in February but down from 4.34 percent in March 2014, according to Freddie Mac. Adjustable-mortgage interest rates also rose in March, averaging 2.46 percent, up from 2.43 percent in February but down from 2.48 percent in March 2014.

Distressed sales, homes sold after foreclosure or for less than what was owed, continued to decline falling from 18.6% of the sales in February to 11.5% in March. The decline was more significant, 11.5% from 27.5%, when compared to March 2014.

Cash only purchases accounted for 25% of the sales with 42.3% of the sales being financed through conventional loans. These percentages are similar to both February 2015 and March 2014. The median days to sell a home was 116. For all of 2014 the median days to sell was 76. The median days to sell is the number of days from the time the property was listed until it went into escrow.

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE

Lake County – March 2015

Median price: $224,000
Median days to sell: 116
Units Sold: 52

Lake County – February 2015

Median price: $180,000
Median days to sell: 118
Units Sold: 43

Lake County – March 2014

Median price: $155,000
Median days to sell: 98
Units Sold: 51

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: Buying, CA, California, Clear Lake, Clearlake, For Sale, Home, Kelseyville, Lake, Lake County, Lakeport, Market Values, Median, Northern California, Prices, Real Estate, Residential, Rick White

New Ice Cream Parlor in Kelseyville called The Scoop!

April 19, 2015 by Rick White

This is a fun spot to chill and have a ice cream cone, shake, sundae and more.

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: CA, California, Clear Lake, Ice Cream, Kelseyville, Lake County, Northern California, Rick White

Great Section about Lake County in the SF Chronical! :)

April 13, 2015 by Rick White

Lake County wine: Tasting without the traffic.

I was very pleased to see this special section provided in the Sunday, San Francisco Chronicle dated April 12, 2015 To know more go to their link to this section provided below.

http://www.sfgate.com/food/article/Lake-County-wine-Tasting-without-the-traffic-6192585.php?cmpid=email-desktop

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: California, Clear Lake, Fishing, grapes, High Valley Appellation, Kelseyville, Konocti Realty, Lake, Lake County, Lakeport, Northern California, Red Hills Appellation, Rick White, vineyard, Vineyards, walnuts, Wine, Wineries, Winery

SOLAR LEASES IMPACTING REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS.

March 30, 2015 by Rick White

If you’re thinking about leasing solar panels be sure to do your homework. Some lease agreements are having a big impact on real estate sales. I am all for green energy and being self sufficient but having some concern with regard to the complication solar leasing is having on real estate sales. Here is a recent article from the Washington Post and recently reprinted by the Los Angeles Time.

http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-harney-20150322-story.html

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: CA, California, Clear Lake, For Sale, Lake County, Northern California, Real Estate Sales, Rick White, Solar Power

Nothing like Springtime in Lake County California!

March 29, 2015 by Rick White

The photos were taken during the month of March 2015. This is a great time of year to look for property and enjoy the scenery.

Mount Konocti & Clear Lake on a nice spring day. 3-29-2015

Filed Under: Rick's Blog Tagged With: CA, California, Clear Lake, Fishing, Konocti Realty, Lake County, Lake View, Lakefront, Lakeview, Mt. Konocti, Northern California, ranches, Real Estate, Rick White, View, Waterfront

Real Estate Median Sales Price Rises in February 2015

March 17, 2015 by Rick White

For Release: March 16, 2015

Real Estate Median Sales Price Rises in February

LAKEPORT (March 16) – The Lake County Association of Realtors® (LCAOR) reported that the median sales price of single family residences for Lake County rose from $159,000 in January 2015 to $180,000 in February, a 13.2% increase. Like sales in February 2014 had a median sales price of $162,450 indicating that there was a 10.8% increase when comparing year to year sales.

The number of units selling in February 2015 decreased by 20.4% when compared to February 2014 falling from 54 units in 2014 to 43 units in 2015. With fewer units selling the months of inventory increased from 6.5 to 7.4. In January there were 305 single family residences listed for sale and in February there were 318. It is not uncommon to see fewer units available during the winter months. In 2014 the maximum number of units for sale in any one month was 505 in August and the low was 318 in January.

Distressed sales, homes sold after foreclosure or for less than what was owed, declined slightly from the January percentage, 18.6% from 19.2%. However the decline was significant, 18.6% from 42.6%, when compared to February 2014.

Cash only purchases were down to 18.6% of the sales which is the lowest percentage in a few years. Conversely conventional loans rose to 41.9% of the sales, up from 32.7% in January. USDA loans were the next most common type of loan used with those making up 16.3% of the transactions. USDA loans have qualifying factors such as income and the selling price of the home. Potential buyers should contact a qualified lender to determine if they qualify for this type of loan. All loan types have qualifying factors, but they vary from loan type to loan type.

The median time that a property was on the market increased from 81 days in February 2014 to 118 for the same month in 2015. In January 2015 the median days on market was 112. It is not substantiated but one possible reason for the increased days on market could be that fewer transactions are being purchased with cash and more are being purchased via loans which have a processing time not associated with cash transactions.

“Despite the lower number of sales real estate activity has been on the upswing” stated Yvette Sloan 2015 President of LCAOR. “The next few months will be a good indicator of how the rest of the year will go.”

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE

Lake County – February 2015
• Median price: $180,000
• Median days to sell: 118
• Units Sold: 43

Lake County – January 2015
• Median price: $159,000
• Median days to sell: 112
• Units Sold: 45

Lake County – February 2014
• Median price: $162,450
• Median days to sell: 81
• Units Sold: 54

Buyers and sellers wanting to find out about the market value of their property or how the market is doing in their neighborhood should contact a Lake County experienced Realtor®. A member roster is available at: http://www.lcaor.com/members/.

Lake County Association of REALTORS® … Helping REALTORS® to improve the consumer experience. LCAOR offices are located in Lakeport, CA.