LoanPerformance Home Price Index Shows Increases For San Antonio
April 30, 2008
First American CoreLogic, announced this week the release of its February 2008 LoanPerformance Home Price Index (HPI).
The LoanPerformance HPI provides a comprehensive set of monthly home price indices and median sales prices covering 7,508 ZIP codes, 957 Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSA) and 670 counties located in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The indices, which are the most comprehensive available in the industry, are reported to clients five weeks after each full month ends.
The index showed the San Antonio Market increased 0.35% for the past 3 months and 5.58% the past 12 months.
Countrywide Launches Plan To Sell Foreclosed Homes To San Antonio
April 26, 2008
Countrywide Financial and New Vista Asset Management have joined together to find qualified buyers for Countrywide’s REO properties. The program is designed to help minimize the impact of foreclosures on neighborhoods by reaching out to consumers interested in residing in these communities. In the relationship, New Vista’s network of real estate professionals who have deep roots in minority communities are assigned the responsibility and will work to ensure that prepared homebuyers, often first-time and minority homebuyers working with New Vista professionals, have the opportunity to purchase REO properties.
San Antonio Real Estate Market Report March 2008
April 22, 2008
San Antonio’s housing market continues to weaken, with fewer home sales in March and a higher than average number of homes set for the May foreclosure auction.Still, home values continued to rise, unlike in most areas of the nation.
Existing home sales dropped 21 percent in March to 1,609 sales compared with 2,039 sales in March 2007, according to the San Antonio Board of Realtors.
But home prices did appreciate, rising 1.6 percent to hit $150,300 from $147,900 in March 2007.
Top 25 Biggest Real Estate Mistakes
April 18, 2008
For those buying or selling a home, these helpful tips could help you avoid costly mistakes on one of the biggest investments of your life. The list was compiled by some of the top real estate experts in the field, including brokers; investors; contractors; market experts; buyers; and sellers. You can catch the special episode on the “25 Biggest Real Estate Mistakes” on HGTV.
25. Buying a House for its Decor
Remember that you are buying the house, not the stuff inside of it, so make sure you see beyond the decorations and look at the bones of the home. Focus on the floor plan and the square footage. You also might want to measure the dimensions and graph out how that’s going to work with your current belongings.
FieldStone Homes Announces Opening Of Carmona Hills Community
April 17, 2008
FieldStone Homes has announced it will be officially opening their Carmona Hills community. The new housing development is the 10th FieldStone community in the San Antonio, Cibolo and New Braunfels area.
Located on 8415 Bolton Hills which is off Southwest Loop 410, this new community is easily accessible to Loop 1604, Highway 90 and I-35. Shopping at Ingram Park Mall, Westlakes and Southpark Malls is just a short drive as well as the many restaurants, parks and activities of the Highway 90 corridor. Carmona Hills is also near Lackland Air Force Base, SeaWorld and downtown San Antonio.
San Antonio Real Estate Investment by NuWire Investor
April 16, 2008
San Antonio Real Estate Prices
“I think the most exciting thing about San Antonio [real estate] is its affordability, and that’s in comparison not only to the [rest of] the United States but even within Texas,” Hale said.
The median price for a single-family home was an estimated $145,000 in February, according to MLS statistics generated by the San Antonio Board of Realtors. As of publishing time, the overall median price was estimated at $164,900 by Yahoo! Real Estate.
For the city of Austin, located 80 miles Northeast of San Antonio, the median home price is considerably higher—an estimated at $289,900, according to Yahoo! Real Estate.
Texas Foreclosure Activity Down 16.11 Percent From March 2007
April 15, 2008
RealtyTrac®, today released its March 2008 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions — were reported on 234,685 properties nationwide during the month, a 5 percent increase from the previous month and a 57 percent increase from March 2007. The report also shows one in every 538 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing during the month.
San Antonio Builders Continue To Limit New Home Starts
April 10, 2008
Builders continued to curb new home starts in the Greater San Antonio area during the First Quarter, 2008. Builders initiated 2,223 starts for the quarter, a decrease of 1,610 units (‐42%) compared to 1Q07 (3,833 starts). On an annual basis, starts fell from 13,647 at YE 2007 to 12,037, a decline of 11.8%. “San Antonio peaked at 20,089 annual starts in 1Q07, thus there has been a decline of about 40% in activity to date. Compare that to the national decline in single family detached start activity of 1,837 million annual units to the current pace of 707 thousand units (‐62%), it is evident that San Antonio has fared better than many areas throughout the United States” notes Cassie Gibson, Residential Strategies, Inc. San Antonio representative.
Tips for San Antonio Homeowners to Avoid Home Improvement Scams
April 9, 2008
May is National Home Improvement Month. During times of a softer economy paired with the approach of warmer weather, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) wants to remind San Antonio homeowners to beware of unscrupulous people posing as remodelers.
One common issue exploited homeowners have run into is having to pay both the contractor and the subcontractors. The homeowner’s financial obligations should only be to the contractor. Some dishonorable contractors are collecting large, upfront payments from residents. When the work has been completed, instead of paying the subcontractors, the dishonest business owner instead pays the interest on properties they have already purchased and can only re-sell below cost. This predictably leaves subcontractors without paychecks and forces them to establish mechanics’ or materialmens’ liens on their customers’ properties.
Forbes Ranks The Best Cities For Home Sellers
April 8, 2008
1. San Jose, Calif.
2. San Francisco, Calif.
3. Salt Lake City, Utah
4. Austin, Texas
5. Kansas City, Mo.
6. San Antonio, Texas
Prices here rose 7.9% last quarter, based on National Association of Realtor estimates, and its foreclosure rate was only 1% (problem markets like Atlanta have a rate of 2.5% and crashing markets like Detroit are over 4%). What makes San Antonio a good place for sellers is that jobs are growing by 3%, the third highest in the country, and construction starts have been slashed by 42%.
