Santa Fe real estate market

The Santa Fe real estate market continues to remain in a situation with mixed signals and conflicted information. As long ago as February, Santa Fe was in a negative but stable situation, a conundrum that continues to the present day. According to a February 23, 2010 article in the New Mexican, “For the last quarter of 2008, the number of homes sold in the county fell from 132 to 106 and the median price dropped from nearly $550,000 to $427,500. And that’s after some discouraged sellers took their homes off the market. Most everything is taking longer to sell, especially higher-priced properties.” The article, written by Anne Constable, continued to say that “The good news is that there are relatively few foreclosures in Northern New Mexico compared to other parts of the country, and few people are under water – owing more on their houses then they are worth…New Mexico escaped the worst for various reasons…”

Another article in the New Mexican emphasized the muted effect of foreclosures on New Mexico homes for sale as compared to the rest of the country. The article found that “The number of U.S. households facing foreclosure in January increased 15 percent from the same month last year, and a surge in cash-strapped homeowners who’ve fallen behind on mortgages could be on the way.” The piece, also released by the Associated Press, went on to note that “There were 107 foreclosures in Santa Fe County in January, according to RealtyTrac…In New Mexico there were 1,281 new foreclosure filings and nine foreclosure sales, according to RealtyTrac…The rate of foreclosures in New Mexico remains low. In his most recent newsletter, Santa Fe title company executive Alan Ball said foreclosures in states such as California and Florida exceeded 400,000 last year. In New Mexico, by contrast, there were just over 7,000 foreclosures.”

Similar news for Santa Fe real estate was reported in an April 14, 2010 article in the New Mexican, which said that “Home sales bounced a bit in the first quarter of 2010, with sale volumes increasing across all sectors of the Santa Fe market, according to several measures. The Santa Fe Association of Realtors reported Wednesday that the total volume of city-county detached home sales increased 16 percent from a year ago to 205.”

Carlsbad real estate market

The Carlsbad real estate market, a subset of the larger Southern California real estate market, has been showing signs of recovery in recent months. According to an April 21, 2010 article in the Los Angeles Times, “The California foreclosure crisis appears to be abating, new data show, as the federal government and big lenders step up efforts to keep troubled borrowers in their homes.” The article, composed by Alejandro Lazo, continued to say that “Mortgage default notices – the first step toward foreclosure – plunged 40.2% statewide in the first three months of the year compared with the same period in 2009, according to San Diego research firm MDA DataQuick.” These general trends for the state of California also extend to the Southern California region, the San Diego area, and Carlsbad specifically.

The average cost for Carlsbad homes for sale, as well as the rest of Southern California, increased substantially according to an April 14, 2010 article in the Los Angeles Times. The piece found that “Southern California’s housing market showed fresh signs of momentum in March with the median price and sales pace improving from the same month a year earlier as buyers hurried to take advantage of a soon-to-expire federal tax incentive, cheap prices and low interest rates.” The article, written by Alejandro Lazo, continued to say that “The median price paid for new and previously occupied houses and condominiums in Southern California jumped 14% in March to $285,000 from the same month a year earlier, according to San Diego real estate research firm MDA DataQuick. The closely watched median – the price at which half the homes sold for more money and half for less – rose 3.6% from February.”

A generally positive trend for Carlsbad real estate and the Southern California market in general was reported by an April 15, 2010 article in the Central Valley Business Times. This piece noted that “Home sales and prices continued a steady but pokey climb up from the bottom in Southern California last month as buyers scrambled to take advantage of low prices and low mortgage interest rates, says a report from MDA DataQuick of La Jolla, a real estate information company.”

Portland real estate market

The Portland real estate market is in a bit of a perplexing situation – although the region continues to face challenging economic times, new residents continue to flood into the area. According to an April 12, 2010 article in the Portland Real Estate Examiner, “Across the nation, foreclosures have hit a new record high. Currently there are 7.9 million loans that are either facing foreclosure or are already bank owned. This is up 51.1% from just one year ago. To make matters even worse, the number of new delinquent loans since January this year is up as well. More than 1.1 million loans that were current as of January 2010 art now at least 30 days late.” The piece, written by Shelby Bateson, continued to say that “Oregon’s mortgage delinquency rate is higher than the national average due to the higher than average unemployment rate here. On the upside however, perhaps, it has been reported by U-Haul corporation that the population in Oregon is growing faster than most states. Portland is the third fastest growing city in the country at 10.16%.”

The average sales price of  Portland homes for sale continued to decline in recent months, according to an April 27, 2010 article in the Oregonian. This piece found that “After showing some small but encouraging gains last summer and fall, Portland-area home prices are falling again, hitting a new low in February, according to the Case Shiller Index released Tuesday.” The article, written by Jeff Manning, continued to note that “Portland prices have declined 21 percent from the peak of July 2007, according to the report. Portland was one of the six major metropolitan areas around the country hitting new floors in February.”

This same decline in the average price of Portland real estate was reported in an April 27, 2010 article in the Portland Business Journal, which found that “U.S. home prices rose in February for the first time since late 2006, but Portland was one of the few exceptions, with prices dipping 4.8 percent in the last year, according to the latest Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller index.”

Raleigh real estate market

The Raleigh real estate market has been starting to recover slowly from the economic recession, according to the most recent indicators available. Although there are still trouble spots, the general trend of Raleigh seems to be positive, at least partially driven by the federal buyers’ tax credit. According to an April 30, 2010 article in WRAL News, “Real estate agents are hoping the housing market will continue its current pace, even after the home buyer’s tax credit expires on Friday. ‘We’ve just seen a nice, good pace for the first four months of this year,’ said John Hawkins, a real estate agent with Fonville Morisey. Hawkins hopes the trend continues but admits he has some concerns.” The article, written by Bruce Mildwurf, continued to say that “The credit for first-time buyers is believed to be playing a bigger role in stimulating home sales this spring. Sales of new homes surged 27 percent last month from a record low a month earlier; it was the biggest monthly increase in 47 years.”

Raleigh homes for sale may be negatively impacted by an increased number of foreclosures, which increased from last year’s levels. According to an April 15, 2010 article in the News Observer, “The number of foreclosure filings in the U.S. in March reached the highest monthly total since at least January 2005, according to a California research firm, while filings in the Triangle were up compared to the same period last year in Raleigh and Cary.” The piece continued to note that “Foreclosure filings in Raleigh and Cary totaled 633 in March, up 120 percent from March 2009. Durham filings in March totaled 100, down 15 percent compared to the same period the prior year…The number of foreclosure filings in Raleigh and Cary during the first quarter of the year totaled 1,470, a 42 percent increase compared to the first quarter of 2009.”

Thankfully, construction on new Raleigh real estate has started to resume, according to a May 6, 2010 article also in the News Observer, which stated that “Triangle homebuilders that have spent the last few months replenishing their stockpile of land are beginning to crank up their construction arms as the supply of new homes dwindles.”