Hope Leitner, Realtor®, CRS

 I think of March as the beginning of Spring, the season of renewal and possibilities. This is true in life, and in real estate. I'm seeing in just the last few weeks; buyers are ready to buy. So, if you're ready to sell, I'll bring them right to you! On the calendar below are so many great events, I'm particularly interested in Tiny Fest California which is a peek at the popular new tiny home trend. As a real estate agent, all things homes are in my wheelhouse, so the Adobe Home Tour in Escondido is also interesting to me. Finally, I have to come up with an excuse to dine in a waterfront restaurant near Point Loma for the Haily Hansen Sailing World Regatta. Those fast boats whipping around San Diego Bay is a sight to see, and something unique to our little corner of the world. If you know anyone who might be interested in receiving this event calendar every month, please have them sign up at this link. March - Ponder this - “Nothing ever seems impossible in spring, y...

The biggest shock to homebuyers is the soaring mortgage rates of 2022 that doubled in one year resulting in approximately 15 million mortgage ready buyers displaced from the market due to affordability issues. As of February 23, 2023, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage was at 6.5%.   While that is twice as high as it was on January 6, 2022, it is still lower than the 7.75% average rate since April 2, 1971, according to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey. When rates increase at a rapid pace like this, it takes time for the public to adjust and begin to accept it as the new normal. Prior to the housing bust that led to the Great Recession, the normal for mortgage rates was in the 6% range and existing home sales were over 6.5 million for three years.   From 2007 to 2014, home sales were closer to 5 million with 2008-2011 at just above 4 million annually. From January 17, 2008 to March 5, 2020, mortgage rates averaged 4.32%.   In this 12-year period...

  Information is brought to you by Hope Leitner Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties Unique Home Accents to Make Your Home More Fun Are you looking for out-of-the-box decorating ideas for your space? Below are a handful of interesting accent ideas to up the creativity of your interior design. Hanging accent lights.  Caged, bubbled, modern, antique—there are myriad styles for hanging accent lights, which can be clustered, paired or used solo to fill up an empty corner or decorate a blank wall. Mantels.  Who says a mantel should only sit above a fireplace? You can easily install a freestanding mantel to rest photos, art or your favorite books. Another trick? If your walls are dark, paint your mantel to match and your items will suddenly be floating. Dips.  Dipped frames, art or even doors are all the rage right now. Imagine a series of white picture frames with their bottom dipped in gold. The best part? You can DIY these in a couple of hours; all you ...

Locking your interest rate protects you from increases due to market conditions.   Locking early safeguards your budgeted payment.   By locking the rate, if the market goes up, you get the lower rate; if it goes down after the lock, you may be able to pay a fee and lower the rate. Knowing when to take the lock is determined by which direction you think the market is going.   If you think rates are going up, lock in early.   If you think rates are going down, ride the rate to within a few days of closing. Some lenders may allow a borrower to lock a rate after pre-approval but is more common to not offer a lock until there is a signed contract on a home.   Even with a pre-approval, it could easily take 30 days or more to close a transaction and the rates can move a lot in that period. There may be a fee charged to lock a rate which is determined by the lender.  Generally, the longer the time for the rate lock, the higher the fee. There is ...

Winter is nearly over, Spring is on the way, and already I have buyers lining up. So, if you've been thinking of selling, think hard. We need homes on the market in San Diego! The gains in 2020, 2021 & 2022 were so extreme, any decline at all just indicates a stabilizing market, there's no crash in sight.  This month I want to talk about contracts and financing - very good topics if you have anyone who's looking at getting into the market for the first time.    February - Ponder this -  An anonymous quote recently tickled my funny bone. “A person doesn't know how much he has to be thankful for until he has to pay taxes on it.” - This is just so true. No matter how painful it is to see those payments winging their way to the government coffers, I am so grateful that have the income that triggers the payments, and community that benefits from the payments. Taxes pay for an amazing range of services that we all benefit from, like cancer research and the National Par...

Before you buy a home, it’s important to   plan ahead . While most buyers consider how much they need to save for a   down payment , many are surprised by the closing costs they have to pay. To ensure you aren’t caught off guard when it’s time to close on your home, you need to understand   what closing costs are and how much you should budget for . What Are Closing Costs? People are sometimes surprised by closing costs because they don’t know what they are. According to  Bankrate : “Closing costs are the fees and expenses you must pay before becoming the legal owner of a house, condo or townhome . . . Closing costs vary depending on the purchase price of the home and how it’s being financed . . .” In other words, your closing costs are a collection of fees and payments involved with your transaction. According to  Freddie Mac , while they can vary by location and situation, closing costs typically include: Government recording costs Appraisal fees Credit report...

  Information is brought to you by Hope Leitner Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties Smart Home Gadgets That Will Elevate Your Home Technology seems to mutate with the speed of light, but is your home keeping up with the changes? Smarten it up with a few smart-home electronics that will boost safety, increase comfort and may even save you a few bucks: Video Doorbell The VTech Video Doorbell, about $115, lets you screen and even video chat with visitors before you answer the door. And the system takes a snapshot each time the doorbell is pressed, so you’ll always know who came a-knocking while you were away. Smart Door Lock The August Smart Lock uses keyless technology to keep your home safe no matter where you are. From your smartphone, you can let guests in, check to make sure you locked up before you left, keep a record of who has entered and exited, and unlock your door from the driveway. Cost? About $220. Home Automation You can ease into wireless control of yo...

Sellers, who last year, were not willing to make any concessions, are much more likely to do so this year due to the softening of the market because of inflation and higher mortgage rates affecting affordability for buyers. Concessions can take place in different forms.   A seller could offer to pay the buyer's closing costs or pay points for the buyer to get an FHA or VA loan.   Another option would be to pay for a 2/1 buydown that would lower the buyer's payments in the first two years of the mortgage. Buydowns can be temporary or permanent and are achieved by pre-paying the interest at the time of closing.   Typically, the seller will do this as an inducement to the buyer.   While individual lenders set the price for permanent buydowns, a common rule-of-thumb would be two points, or two percent of the mortgage amount, to buydown the rate 0.5% for the life of the mortgage. A more common type of buydown is a 2/1 where the payment is calculated at 2% lo...

The TCJA of 2019 dramatically increased the standard deduction so that many homeowners benefit from taking that rather than itemizing their deductions.   Taking the standard deduction may result in a larger deduction even if you have no expenses that qualify for claiming itemized deductions. Another thing that made reinforced that was interest rates for mortgages were low at the time and the interest paid plus the property taxes were less than the standard deduction. In 2022, mortgage rates more than doubled, so, anyone who purchased a home or refinanced at the higher rates might benefit from itemizing rather than taking the standard deduction.   The takeaway in this article is to compare both methods each year to see which way provides the larger deduction. For 2022, the standard deduction for married couples filing jointly is $25,900, for single filers and married individuals filing separately is $12,950, and for heads of households is $19,400.   There are ...

  Have Home Values Hit Bottom? Whether you’re already a homeowner or you’re looking to become one, the recent headlines about  home prices  may leave you with more questions than answers.  News stories  are talking about home prices falling, and that’s raising concerns about a repeat of what happened to prices in the  crash in 2008 . One of the questions that’s on many minds, based on those headlines, is:  how much will home prices decline?  But what you may not realize is expert  forecasters  aren’t calling for a free fall in prices. In fact, if you look at the latest data, there’s a case to be made that the biggest portion of month-over-month price depreciation nationally may already be behind us – and even those numbers weren’t significant declines on the national level. Instead of how far will they drop, the question becomes:  have home values hit bottom? Let’s take a look at the latest data from several reputable industry sourc...