Foreclosures on the Rise despite Increased Loan Modifications
A report published December, 28 by the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency along with the Office Thrift Division stated that mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures continue to increase nationwide. Read More

Ozone Pollution Worst in Los Angeles, San Diego not in Top Ten
A recent report filed by the American Lung Association rank U.S. cities which are most adversely affected by 3 types of air pollution; San Diego California did not make the top ten. The three types are: year-round particle pollution, ozone pollution, and short-term particle pollution. Read More

Author Speculates if Aging Baby Boomers will Alter Housing Trends
Matt Thornhill, co-author of the book "Boomer Consumer: Ten New Rules for Marketing to America's Largest, Wealthiest, and Most Influential Group" predicts that boomers will be a growth industry for the next two decades. Read More

Fannie Mae Tightens Up Lending Rules on Condominiums
Merry Christmas everyone! Stricter standards have been set by Fannie Mae and for once, California doesn't lead the way, but Florida does. Read More

Despite More Consumer Protection, Real Estate Fraud Increases
Fraud in the real estate market is on the rise, despite current aggressive response from federal regulators. Read More

Lighting of the Menorah in La Jolla Today
To mark the beginning of Chanukah, there will be a large menorah lighting by the Chabad Center in University City. The lighting will take place today at 4:30 at the Westfield UTC. Read More

Federal Reserve Makes History, Rates 0 to .25
As most of you know by now, the Fed made history this week by reducing key interest rates (the rate that banks will charge on another) to an all-time low of 0 to .25 percent. There were hints that this would transpire, after the last cut that brought the target rate down to one percent in October. Previously, the one percent rate was the lowest it had ever been and only seen once before in the last fifty years. The Fed also said that it planned to keep the rate at very low levels. In addition, the Federal Reserve assured they are doing all they can to try and fix the economy, but the move made clear that the economy has continued its downward trend. Read More

Fannie Mae Helps Tenants Affected by Owner Foreclosure
Fannie Mae announced on December 15 that tenants affected by owners who go into foreclosure will be allowed to remain in the homes and avoid eviction. Read More

Sales Increase Where Prices Have Tumbled
Across the country real estate sales are seeing an increase in markets where home prices have experienced a decline. The new wave of sales is very different from before the housing bubble burst. Read More

Area Factors Point to End of Housing Meltdown
These days it may be hard to overlook all the negative news surrounding our nation's economy. With unemployment on the rise, Wall Street riding a roller coaster, and Detroit asking for bailouts, it is hard to pay any regard to even the slightest bit of good news. Read More

Investors and First-Time Buyers Beginning to Stir in California Real Estate Market
It appears that home prices in some parts of California have dropped so much that we are beginning to see a different type of buyer. Families that are making an average salary are once again able to afford to buy a home. Read More

La Jolla & Sand Diego Schools, Some of the Best in the Nation
La Jolla High School leads the way, compared to other San Diego schools, when it comes to the number of advanced classes offered, with an astounding twenty-three. Students living in the higher priced real estate markets in San Diego, seem to have a scholastic advantage when it comes to options. However, the San Diego Unified School District is working on a plan that would increase the minimum number of advanced placement classes to ten throughout San Diego high schools. Read More

Unfortunately, Even Mortgage Modification isn't Working
Some troubled homeowners that have been able to modify their mortgages are still trying to find their way "out of the woods". Read More

Mortgage Rates Fall to Lowest Levels since January; Jumbo Loan Deadline Nears
Interest rates on 30-yr. mortgages dropped last week to their lowest level since January of this year. This drop comes as a result of the government's launching of sweeping new efforts to help stabilize the troubled U.S. housing market. Read More

Perhaps it is a Good Time to Think About Buying a Home
There is speculation that in the next five or ten years when this current economic crisis is behind us, and home prices have regained strength, that now was the golden age for the first-time home buyer. Right now could be the chance of a lifetime for those individuals that are considering buying a home that are fortunate enough to have their financial resources in order: enough savings for an adequate down payment partnered with high FICO scores. Some analysts speculate that the time to buy is when economic pessimism is at its peak. The point of peak pessimism may be closer than we think; in many areas of the country home prices have dropped to drastically low levels; couple that fact with historically-low interest rates and the time to buy may not be more opportune. Interest rates are currently near 5.5%, and there is suggestion out there that the federal government may attempt to drive the rate as low as 4.5%. This would truly be an historic opportunity to lock in such a low rate for the next three decades. Read More

Home sales in California Increase
The California Association of Realtors recently reported that home sales within the state of California showed an increase of 117.1% in the month of October over the last year. These high sales are in part due to the falling median price of a home, which fell 39.9% on an annualized basis, 552,750 homes sold in October, and the highest rate since the fourth quarter of 2005. Increased sales were generated from areas with a higher percentage of distressed (foreclosure, short sales). Read More

Mortgage Workout Programs are Available
Homeowners who are currently in default or are in danger of falling behind on their mortgage can look for assistance from a variety of sources now available to them. Read More

Mortgage Applications Double as Interest Rates Tumble
Last week, recent government bailouts led to falling interest rates, resulting in a 112.1 percent increase in mortgage applications on a seasonally-adjusted basis from the prior week. Read More

Economists Debate when Home Prices will Rebound
A survey was recently conducted by the Wall Street Journal regarding the status of home prices in the U.S. The Economists surveyed were in agreement that prices of homes in this country will not "hit bottom" until the third quarter of 2009- at the earliest, with a strong possibility that the current downward trend could continue into 2011 or 2012. At that point prices will likely begin to rise once again, however not at the rate which was seen in the past ten years. Instead, the Economists surveyed feel that prices will increase at a rate hovering around one percentage point higher than the rate of inflation; while others see prices increasing as much as four percent over the next 20 years. Read More

Firm Takes Over Properties in San Diego and Southern California
It has been confirmed that a developer out of Texas has taken possession of more than fifty office buildings in Southern California. The value of the real estate is around one and a half billion dollars. The Texas developer was forced to take over the properties when the previous owner had not been able to make anymore payments. Read More

Fed says, New Interest Rate Cuts Not Out of the Question
The Federal Reserve continues to state that they are open to even more interest rate cuts, however, they are warning that by doing so in the near future might turn out to be fruitless due to the weak economy. In addition, they said that the economy is likely to remain in a weakened state through part of 2009. Read More

Home Ownership Does Not Come With a Manual!
Research shows that educated home owners tend to be surviving the current housing crisis. Data shows that when buyers are schooled as to the possible surrounding issues of homeownership; those buyers have a much greater chance at continuing to be home owners, in spite of the recent housing market and mortgage crisis. Read More