Oakland Ca Real Estate's Blog: All Categories

The City of San Leandro has contracted the BAHBA (Bay Area Home Buyers Agency) to help provide opportunities for first time home buyers in the Bay Area. Currently there are five to ten households per month getting approved for one of the various first time buyer financing programs, incentives and subsidies offered through the City of San Leandro. There are first time home buying seminars held twice a month to educate consumers about the home buying process.

Interest rates are still low and inventory is high, which means there are more opportunities for buyers than in previous years. There are incentives and subsidies being provided by the city, county and the some of the developers that can end up providing up to $150,000 in assistance.

Last week a cargo ship crashed into one of the protective bumpers of the Bay Bridge which caused over 50,000 gallons of the worst kind of oil to spill into the Bay. The pilot of the ship says that his navigation equipment was not functioning properly, but that makes me wonder why the ship was allowed to operate if that was the case? It was also a very foggy morning that day, which may have contributed to the accident.

The type of oil that spilled is a type that is left over from oil that has been refined, which means that it is more toxic and harder to clean than crude oil. Approximately 700 birds have been found dead, and another 600 or so have been treated and cleaned by volunteers.

The accident prompted Governner Schwartzenegger to order all…

It seems that some of the developers in Oakland are not immune to the high inventory that is forcing people to slash prices. I was somewhat surprised to learn that the Olson Brothers, (developers of one of the largest and most luxurious new condo developments in Oakland) have postponed the second phase of the development. 

The obvious reason for the postponement is the fact that not many of the units in the first phase have sold yet. Financially, it can't make sense for them to keep building while there are still many of the first phase units available.

Sales at Broadway Grand-another new development in Oakland are also sluggish compared to their projections. Out of over 100 units, I believe only a dozen or so have sold yet.Hopefully the new year and…

I was suprised to hear that the Federal Reserve and other government entities are floating the idea of allowing the FHA to insure Jumbo loans at up to $1,000,000. This could potentially mean that in the near future, someone with average credit and no(or low) down payment would actually be able to get a loan of up to $1,000,000 at a favorable rate.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see how that could help stimulate the market by allowing a huge pool of people to be eligible for loans who otherwise wouldn't qualify. There has already been talk of raising the FHA guidelines for high cost areas, but this is the first time there has been mention of FHA loans possibly going up to 1 mil. I think all these types of ideas need to be explored considering the…

I was watching Ben Bernanke on TV earlier talking about the economy and where the economy was heading. He got questioned by a Senator about when he thinks the housing market might bottom out and begin to stabilize. He stated that this coming spring could be the beginning of a rebound, because a lot of the credit problems problems will subside.

On the other hand, in my market there's tons of short sales now, and I don't see an end to that anytime soon. Especially when there is supposed to be a whole new set of those adjustables re-setting next year. I also think certain areas will see a bottom sooner than others, and I think those are the high cost markets. So, where do you think the Bottom is in your market?

There were a couple of real estate auctions this weekend, one in the Central Valley and one in Pinole (Contra Costa County, 20 mins from Oakland). Developers are resorting to auctions now in some parts of the Bay Area to move some of the inventory they have piled up.

Basically people are buying homes at a 20-30% below what they were listed for, and for those who are interested in new construction, an auction may be the way to go if they are having one in an area you like. Elk Grove, (fast growing community in Sacramento County) will be having an auction of condo conversions next weekend. These auctions can save you $100,000 or more on your new home!

The turnout is big, because people know what they can save, and as long as the inventory of new homes…

We had an earthquake yesterday which was one of the largest we had since the Loma Prieta quake in 89. This one was 5.2 magnitude, and it lasted at least 15-20 seconds, unlike some we've had that were short jolts. It was centered near San Jose, about a 30 minute drive from Oakland. There was a basketball game going on at the Oakland Arena when the quake hit, and people watching the game reported seeing the whole complex rock from side to side!

Luckily there were no injuries or major damage, except for small items that may have fallen in peoples homes. It seems like the seismic activity has been increasing somewhat, hopefully this will relieve pressure on the faults and buy us some more time before the next big one!

Some people might think that with all the problems with financing and all the doom and gloom media coverage that you can get a steal on real estate right now because sellers are desperate. However in nice areas, we are still seeing multiple offers commonly. I just recieved a mutiple counter offer on a home that I wrote an offer on for a client. The home is listed at $950k, and we offered $975k  because they already had received on offer but they hadn't presented it yet to the seller. So even at 25k oever asking price, we still have competition. In the market of a few years back, we might have been in competition with five other people instead of just one, so I guess I shouldn't complian!

Granted the home is in an excellent area and in great shape, but it…