Recent Lake Tahoe Home Buyer Testimonials

Purchasing a bank owned property can be a bit overwhelming.  When dealing with foreclosures there can be multiple offers, scary bank addendum’s, issues with having utilities turned on for inspections, out of town title and escrow companies and tight time periods. When I am representing a buyer on a bank owned foreclosure purchase, I try to go the extra mile to insure that the transaction will go as smoothly as possible.

Last week I closed escrow on two bank owned properties and here is what my two wonderful clients had to say about my performance:

We were in the Tahoe area visiting our son and drove by a house with a REO sign.  We made a few phone calls to local Realtors then spoke to Brent Johnson who seemed to be very knowledgeable.  Brent was immediately available to help us with options and educate us on a Real estate ownedproperty.  Brent was very knowledgeable and patient and won our confidence – later that afternoon we found ourselves back in his office discussing the process and submitted an offer.  Throughout the process, which included a second round of negotiations, Brent was there as an advisor for us.   Soon thereafter we received a call that the bank accepted our offer – Brent helped us to interface with the other realtor and the bank to make a few concessions and repairs on the home before close of escrow.  Brent’s expertise and knowledge in the field made this transaction successful.

Thanks again Brent
Bill and Mona Pecsi
Southern CA

South Lake Tahoe Foreclosure Statistics

So far this year almost one in three houses sold in South Lake Tahoe was a bank owned foreclosure. There have been 353 single family homes reported as sold on the South Lake Tahoe MLS, 109 of them were foreclosures. With a steady incoming inventory of foreclosure listings coming onto the market, buyers looking for deals still have a good selection to choose from. Although there is still a steady incoming inventory of foreclosure listings, there are more buyers in the real estate market competing for the deals.

The competition over the foreclosure listings has caused many multiple offer situations and has caused many homes to sell over the list price. The average list to sales price for the 30 foreclosure listings that sold from 31 to 60 days of being on the market was 103.47% of list price. The non foreclosures only sold for 96.8% of list price with the same days on the market.

Below is a graph showing the average list price to sales price for the foreclosure listings in South Lake Tahoe that have sold so far this year.

The bank owned foreclosures are also selling for a much lower price per square foot than the non-foreclosure listings. The 109 foreclosures have sold for an average price per square foot of $191 and the non-foreclosures have sold for an average price per square foot of $252. One thing to keep in mind is that most of the bank owned foreclosures needed some work. Weather it was carpet, paint, appliances, or a total remodel needed, there was usually some kind of work necessary for the foreclosure homes.

The average days on the market was much lower for the foreclosures also. The average days on the market for the foreclosures was 87 days. The average days on the market for the non foreclosures was 185 days.

Here are some more interesting comparisons between the foreclosures and non-foreclosures sold this year.

• The median price per square foot for the foreclosure listings was 1,520 and the median square footage for the non-foreclosures was 1,611.
• The median sales price for the sold foreclosures was $280,000 and the median sales price for the non-foreclosures was $352,000.
• The median days on the market for the sold foreclosures was 75 days and the median days on the market for the non-foreclosures was 147.

If you are interested in purchasing a foreclosure in South Lake Tahoe, here are some tips. Make sure that you sign up for new listing notification on my website so that new foreclosure listings are e-mailed to you as they come onto the market. Be sure to look at my current list of foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe for an updated list of what foreclosures are available and which foreclosures are in escrow. The most important thing to do is to get pre-approved from a mortgage broker. Many banks will not even look at an offer unless a pre-approval letter is included with the offer. When you find a foreclosure that you are interested in, be ready to act quickly. With multiple offer situations very common with foreclosure listings, time is of the essence!

If you have any further questions regarding foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe, please call Brent Johnson today!

The $8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit is Extended and Improved

There is more good news for the South Lake Tahoe real estate market. On Friday November 6Th, President Obama signed a bill extending and expanding the first-time home buyers tax credit.

The first-time homebuyer tax credit that was scheduled expire on December 1st has now been extended through the end of June, 2010. In order to qualify for the $8,000 tax credit, home buyers must enter into contract prior to April 30 and close escrow by June 30.

 More home buyers will now qualify for the rebate because the income limits have also been raised. The income limit for single home buyers is $125,000, and married couples can now earn $225,000 and still get the full credit.  The previous income limits to claim the tax credit were $75,000 for single home buyers, and $150,000 for married home buyers. To be considered a first time home buyer you must not have had an interest in a principal residence for 3 years prior to the home purchase.

The first-time home buyer tax credit did a great job stimulating the low end properties on the market, but a new addition to the bill will hopefully stimulate the higher end properties as well. Homeowners who have owned and occupied a residence for at least five years out of the last eight can now claim a $6500 tax credit as well. This new tax credit was designed to help the higher end housing market and homebuyers looking to trade-up in homes.

The extension of the first time home buyer tax credit is great news for those buyers that thought that they missed out on the rebate. For additional information about the tax credit or questions regarding the South Lake Tahoe real estate market, please give California and Nevada real estate agent Brent Johnson a call today!

October South Lake Tahoe Real Estate Review

October was another great month for single family home sales in South Lake Tahoe. There were 46 homes sold in October which tied the month September for the most single family houses sold in 2009. Home buyers did a great job taking advantage of the low home prices and the great fall weather here in South Lake Tahoe. Many of the home buyers were first time home buyers taking advantage of the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit before it expires. There has been talk about the possibility of the first time home buyer tax credit being extended. According to The National Association of Realtors, Key lawmakers in the Senate have tentatively agreed to extend the existing tax credit for first time home buyers. If the tax credit is extended, it should benefit the housing market across the country.

Here are the statistics for the single family houses in South Lake Tahoe that sold in October:

• There were 46 single family homes in South Lake Tahoe that were sold in October
• 16 of the sold homes were bank owned foreclosures
• There were 4 short sales in South Lake Tahoe sold
• The average sales price for the sold homes was $440,393 (up from $371,058 in September)
• The median sales price was $323,500 (up from $292,500 in September)
• The average selling price per square foot was $239 (up from $215,000 in September)
• The median days on the market was 123

There were only 4 short sales that closed escrow in October, this is down from 7 sold in September. The short sales that sold had a very long median days on the market of 227. The average price per square foot for the short sales was $231, and the median sales price was $564,500. It still seems like most banks are more willing to spend time and money on foreclosing on homes than they are willing to work with the sellers and real estate agents to get short sales closed!

There were 16 bank owned foreclosures that were sold in October. The average price per square foot for the sold foreclosures was $184, down from $196 in  September. The average price per square foot for the non-distress sales that sold in October was $274, $90 per square foot more than the foreclosures. South Lake Tahoe real estate buyers continued to target bank owned foreclosure listings and continued to pay close to or above list price for them. The foreclosures that sold in the first 30 days of being listed (3 homes) sold for 98% of list price. The foreclosures that sold from 31-60 days of being listed (2homes) sold for 130% of list price. The foreclosures that sold from 61-90 days of being listed (4 homes) sold for 94% of list price. The foreclosures that sold after over 91 days of being listed (7 homes) sold for 101% of the listing price.

• The average sales price for the foreclosures sold in October was $308,838
• The median sales price for the sold foreclosures was $282,500
• The median days on the market was 79
• The average sales price per square foot was $184

There is still a great selection of houses available in South Lake Tahoe. There are currently 346 houses for sale on the South Lake Tahoe mls and 95 houses that are in escrow. There has also been some decent foreclosures coming onto the market each week. Make sure to keep visiting my current list of foreclosures in South Lake Tahoe or sign up for my new listing notification to be notified of new listings that meet your criteria.