It’s nice that Glen Park has a Bay Area Rapid Transit station. I enjoy BART stations.
Glen Park Bart [website]
Filed under: Ggold, Glen Park, random , bart, Glen Park, random
November 19, 2005 • 7:57 pm 0
Hold on tight–we may be in for a wild ride…
We are now hearing about it every day in our real estate crazed town. The news, the newspaper, web-postings, and the radio are all talking about the market change, most of it in a negative context. So much of what consumers do is based on confidence. Much of consumer confidence is based on an unexplained, unjustified “feeling” of the economy. Greg and I have noticed a change in attitude from our buying clients and we are trying to be as clear and upfront with our selling clients by letting them know they will not receive the same amount of money for their home today as they may have 3-6 months ago. That being said, there is nothing negative about this market, you just have to approach it the right way. Balance is key in everything–I’m of the opinion that there is slightly more balance in the market at the moment.
Greg and I have picked Potrero Hill and Glen Park as two places that can still be a great place for sellers and an opportunity for buyers. Anybody selling their home in either of these neighborhoods is still going to make a great deal of money if they purchased it in the last few years and the home is brought on the market with TONS of exposure–sellers need to separate themselves from the rest of the listings out there (want to know how?). Buyers no longer need to be as afraid of multiple bids and overbidding. In fact, in many cases, buyers actually have some power–that’s right, I said it–sellers are no longer in complete control.
It is my job to get my selling clients the most money possible for their homes and get my buying clients in at the lowest dollar amount possible. This market correction we are clearly seeing is definitely good news for my buying clients and for the sellers, you just need to be more realistic–there is plenty of money to go around and Greg and I can help you get it.
Most of the readers of this blog live in either Potrero Hill or Glen Park–I’m very interested in hearing your thoughts about your micro-housing economies and all of the new developments. Buyers, do you feel this is finally your opportunity? Are you still skeptical of high prices and higher interest rates? Sellers, do you feel as though you’ve missed an opportunity? Do you feel as though your agent is doing a good job to make your house the greatest one on the market? Is there any investment outside of real estate that yielded such amazing profits over the last few years? Just some food for thought….
Filed under: Uncategorized
November 8, 2005 • 6:05 am 0
Mortgage Market Update
By: Jason Russell
With rates still bouncing up and down, it seems as if everyone has an opinion about where rates and the housing market is headed, and these opinions don’t seem to provide much useful advice.
No one can predict which direction rates are going to head or where housing prices will be in the future. Analysts and economists want to believe they have the tools to make such predictions. In reality, they are just guessing.
So, what does that mean for you ?
- If you are shopping for a new home and are nervous about rising interest rates, get into a mortgage that you can afford and that best matches the time you will stay in or keep in the property. If you are sure this is a home you only see yourself in for a few years, then there is no need for a longer term mortgage. Conversely, if there is a white picket fence outside the place, by all means, get into that 30 year mortgage.
- If you are shopping and concerned that prices will fall right after you purchase, I would again give the same advice. Get into a rate/payment that will allow you to ride out the fluctuations in the market AND is a loan/payment you can afford. This way, if the market does correct, you can stay in your home and not worry about selling due to not being able to make your payments.
Of course, this applies for refinancing as well. Rates have been trending up, and if you see yourself needing more security and don’t want to be concerned about rising rates, move into a loan that gives you a longer fixed term.
The down side is that you are almost surely taking a higher rate when they switch from an ARM to a fixed-rate loan. But, the tradeoff is that you don’t have to worry about the rate rising in the future. An interest rate for 30 years in the mid 6’s is still an amazing deal by historical standards.
Prime Rate (the benchmark rate tied to 2nd mortgages) will continue its climb, and those of you with large adjustable 2nd mortgages tied to prime rate should possibly look to refinance out of some of this debt.
Please let me know if I can answer further questions about your financing needs.
Best Regards – Jason
Filed under: mortgage , jason russell, mortgage
November 7, 2005 • 5:14 pm 0
Glen Park–Is it the next real estate hidden gem?
Do you remember Potrero Hill 15 years ago? 10? 5? I moved to San Francisco 7 years ago and at that time I was 1. Not extremely familiar with Potrero Hill and 2. Was told it could be a dangerous place with nothing to do. I started to get to know the city a bit over the course of my residence only to find myself in Potrero Hill for the first time about 6 years ago. It was a sunny afternoon (what a shock, right?) and I was headed to the Anchor Steam Brewery with my friends for a tour. That was my first experience with the ‘Hill and I was intrigued–there was parking, there was sun, there were a ton of single family homes, open space and cute shops. I lived around the city a bit after that visit and started to meet people that lived on the ‘hill. Everybody that lived in Potrero seemed so proud of their neighborhood, so comfortable and so glad that area had not been exploited yet.
As most people in San Francisco know, Potrero Hill has been one of the hottest places to live over the last 3 years with the new Mission Bay campus, the well-publicized home prices and the pride in ownership that seems to be ramped on the ‘Hill. There is sun, parking, beautiful homes and a sense of community that does not exist in most of the city. I have lived in 8 districts in San Francisco and I have not loved more or felt more comfortable than I did in Potrero hill. To buy a single-family house on the hill is no longer the bargain it was 2, 3, 5 or 10 years ago. Residents have put so much time, money and pride into their homes that a potential buyer needs a significant income to afford to live there.
As a real estate agent, I’m always trying to find great homes for my clients. Greg and I have several clients that would live nowhere but on the ‘Hill, so our roots have been planted there and will continue to help buyers buy and sellers sell on the ‘hill for as long as I can see. That being said, we have also tried locating the next “big thing.” I’ll be honest–there is no place in the city with as much sun, as much parking and as much community tie, but Greg and I have located a place where we believe will be the next big boom in the San Francisco housing market–Glen Park!
Sure, you know Glen Park–the district with the Bart station, the area on the other side of Twin Peaks near the 280 freeway. Glen Park, with several single family homes and the infrastructure for a very cute, hip, commercial district. Glen park is what Potrero hill was several years ago. It is what Bernal Heights was just a couple years ago–untapped potential! Relative to Potrero and Bernal, Glen Park homes are more affordable. Many of the homes have back-yards, parking and are close to transportation. The pride in ownership isn’t as strong in glen park as it is on the hill, but I’m guessing that is going to change over the next few years as people “discover” Glen Park again.
The infrastructure is there! Chenery Street has many commercial businesses, restaurants, and pubs–the exterior may need a face lift, but that’s it! There is a Bart station which many SF neighborhoods cannot boast and as we have been putting our clients into homes in the area, we have been getting nothing but amazing feedback and excitement.
November 4, 2005 • 4:25 pm 0
night from the north slope
1 reason why living on the ‘hill is so fantastic—views for miles…..
Filed under: Potrero Hill , Potrero Hill
November 3, 2005 • 5:08 pm 0
State of the market–BUBBLE BURSTING AHEAD?
bubble. bubble this. bubble that. our economy is in a bubble. the housing market is in a bubble. people in california live in a bubble. i think “bubble” must be one of the most over-used, over-hyped words of 2005. why are all the commentators, authors and everybody that thinks they are an expert continually fueling the “bubble” talk?
yes, energy prices have gone up significantly. yes, interest rates have gone up over the last year. yes, housing prices have appreciated at unprecedented paces over the last few years. how does any of this constitute a bubble? let’s say inflation sets in, interest rates rise and housing prices “mellow” a bit. is it all over at that point? would you consider our bubble to have popped if this happens? has our economy slowed in the past and if so–did the bubble pop?
our economy is very sensitive to analysis, chatter and consumer confidence. at the moment, all a consumer hears is negative dialogue which creates a nervous buyer. simmer down–the US economy is going nowhere. there are always peaks and troughs–if anybody knows this, it should be us, the bay-area residents. we saw boom with a gold rush, we saw bust with an earthquake. we saw boom post-war, we saw bust with the regan era. we saw boom with the dot-com, we saw bust shortly thereafter. we saw boom over the last 4 years with historically low interest rates….. will we see a bust? if so, will we recover? if history is any indication–absolutely!
i’ve noticed the attitudes of home buyers change a bit over the last two months. most of them tell me about what they recently read or talked about with friends–i typically share my thoughts and try to create some thought provoking questions for them. you see, home buyers in SF are leary of a deal. many think that if there are not multiple folks putting an offer on a house, then something must be wrong. they think that if a home is on the market for 14+ days, it must be a bad house. additionally they think, this bubble will pop! as far as i’m concerned, now is a great time to consider purchasing a home. there is more inventory to choose from now than there has been in years. interest rates are still low and all of the signs show they will likely increase–meaning, purchasing power is stronger now than it may be in the upcoming months.
the market has shifted, no doubt. in my opinion, we were due for a shift and i welcome it. the home sellers that greg and i work with are becoming more educated (we’d like to take a tiny bit of credit for that) and understand that their home may not sell in 10 days and receive multiple offers. instead, greg and i try to approach the marketplace fairly–price the house at a point the seller is comfortable with accepting. buyers enjoy a market like that because there is no game, no confusion and much less guessing. for our buyers, greg and i find great deals every single day. there are a lot of houses on the market right now and many of those sellers are being represented by agents that don’t acknowledge the market shift–that’s where greg and i pounce.
these are just a few thoughts, but have many more. greg and i also have statistical data about the market we’d be happy to share if you are at all interested. would love to hear your thoughts….
Filed under: Uncategorized
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