Real Estate

East Bay Real Estate: 2009 Fourth Quarter Can = BIG Results!

For the past 20+ years Jim Walberg has followed the advice of his mentor given him in 1989, “Why not have the fourth quarter be your BIGGEST real estate sales quarter each year?”  That advice was given without me understanding that it was contrary to the belief of most Realtors in our region.  If you listen to the conversations that typically happen with Realtors during this time of year, you will discover the talk is about how slow the market is.  My experience is that those conversations are based on that fact Realtors would like to take more time off during the fourth quarter for the many holidays packed into these three months as opposed to it actually being a true statement.  The fourth quarter has been our BIGGEST quarter over a half of the time the past 20+ years! Read more

Real Estate

East Bay Real Estate Continues To Defy The Media

The first two months of 2008 have seen a dramatic change in real estate sales for the San Ramon Valley and the Lamorinda corridor!

No matter what the media is saying about the demise of real estate values and sales it continues to always be a local experience! (Review my past posting on this topic.) Remember…”if it bleeds it reads!” The media is out of business if there are not dramatic headlines that sells advertising. The reality is that the San Ramon Valley and the Lamorinda areas of the East Bay have had dramatic increases in opened escrows in the first two months of 2008!

It is still a Buyers market with a large inventory of listings. However, there has been a sharp turnaround this year with Buyers taking advantage of the very attractive interest rates and a Federal government that cannot let the national real estate markets faulter because of needing their economic horsepower to continue the growth of the economy. The two geographic pockets in the East Bay that are mentioned above have been the stars in real estate sales this year. Prices are still not rising but as the listing inventory is decreased you will see a continued stabilization of the prices to the point of them beginning to rise in the second quarter. (Jim’s prediction.)

The eastern and western fringes of the East Bay continue to be a challenge with large numbers of short sales and foreclosures still the norm of the market. It is a great time for investors to snap up properties at bargain basement prices. But, don’t expect that same experience in the San Ramon Valley or Lamorinda. Mind you, there are still some bargains in these two areas, but that is not typical. The bargains are homes that were over leveraged with crazy mortgage schemes that are not backfiring on the consumers.

We do our homework everyday regarding statistics and what the facts are regarding our real estate market areas. So, if you are wanting a look at reality instead of the media, give me a buzz and lets talk. Until next time…your East Bay lifestyle dective remains on duty.