South Bay Homes and Real Estate

Good News, Bad News…or, One man’s trash is another man’s treasure!

Good = Southern CA home sales skyrocketed a record-setting 65 percent in September, compared to a year ago! Wow!

Bad = However, the median price dipped below $300,000 – plunging more than 33 percent, according to DataQuick. Throughout the region a full 50 percent of all home sales were in some stage of foreclosure. That’s what is driving home prices down now. There’s plenty of demand…just too many foreclosures.

Good = The foreclosure numbers do show a 12 percent decline from August to September.

Bad =  ”Much of the 12 percent decrease in September can be attributed to changes in state laws that have at least temporarily slowed down the pace at which lenders are moving forward with foreclosures,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “Most significantly, SB 1137 in California took effect in early September and requires lenders to make contact with borrowers at least 30 days before filing a Notice of Default (NOD). Follow this link to view current Torrance Foreclosures. In September, we saw California NODs drop 51 percent from the previous month”, he added.

That reduced number of foreclosures may not amount to a hill of beans, according to the blogger Sean O’Toole, founder/CEO of ForeclosureRadar.com.

“Be careful with drawing any conclusions from the declines. The reality is that this only delays the process, and unless lenders radically change their position on loan modifications with principal balance reductions, it will likely have little impact other than a delay of the inevitable,” O’Toole writes.

So, trash for South Bay sellers and treasures for South Bay buyers! Call me to help you do either!

Ryan ‘Rocky’ Rockwood

310-809-0203

Ryanrockwood@kw.com