HEMET MARKET SNAPSHOT   by John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR®   Hemet CA Real Estate          Well, it's time to take another look at the real estate market in Hemet CA.  I wish I could report better news, but hey, I am just the messenger.During the month of July, 2007 166 single family residences were added to the rolls of the Hemet San Jacinto Association of Realtors (HSJAOR) MLS and yet only 44 homes in total came off of the Hemet MLS.The sharp contrast is further magnified with the pricing.  The new listings have an average List Price (LP) of $329,688.  Another 44 homes went under contract in July 2007- or as we use the status/term PENDING.  The Average List Price of the PENDING homes is $292,988 compared to the Average Sold price (SP) of the 44 homes that sold in Hemet in July 2007, wh... 08/05/2007

Conspiracy Theory:  Homeowner or Renter?  by John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR®   Mission Grove RealtyThere has been a raging discussion on Bill Roberts' blog in an article where he raises the question of the need for stated income and no doc loans and goes on to become an advocate for these loans.Before I get into my observations in this blog, let me comment as I have on Bills blog, that I do believe there is a place for these loans.  I just do not believe they should be as common as bubble gum machines at the supermarket or car wash.Living in a first time buyer bedroom community, I believe that a lot of good people were enticed into this type of loan by a lot of slick advertising messages, slick loan officers and real estate agents as well as peer pressure and keeping up with the proverbi... 08/04/2007

Dream Home or Nightmare?by John Occhi, Hemet REALTORMission Grove RealtyWorking with a lot of Short Sale and REO properties there is always the risk of a health hazard when entering a vacant home for the first time.  You just never know what you might find.                                            Have you ever opened a refrigerator in July after the electricity has been turned off for a week?  How about if it was stocked with opened dairy products?  Maybe a few meat products?  Some decaying vegetation of some sort?  Not to mention all the fuzzy green and white stuff that seems to be growing everywhere...?If you ever have the opportunity, I hope you are wearing sandals; otherwise it will probably knock your socks off.                                                                   ... 07/30/2007

CAR Virtual Advocate Update - Wood Burning Stoves & Fireplacesby John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®    Mission Grove Realty   First, I should draw your attention to the California Association of REALTORS® (CAR) Virtual Advocate program.  It is a voluntary sign up that alerts you to any news that the CAR feels is important to our industry.  In many cases it is regarding pending legislation and a cry for us inform other REALTORS® of what is taking place and a call to action.Well, I just received such an alert less than an hour ago that I thought I would share.  This is not for the tree huggers and I am not looking to turn this into a Greenpeace blog about how important it is to save the environment - please save those comments for your own blog.                                                   ... 07/30/2007

Foreclosure Rates Continue To Climb in Californiaby John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR   Hemet CA Real Estate  There are no surprises in the Mid-Year Report that was released today by RealtyTrac, an online leader in foreclosure property information.  Foreclosures continue to increase across the country.  See, no surprise.What is new to the report format is that RealtyTrac has added a number it calls "Unique Properties".  They issue a quarterly report and starting with the mid-year 2007 they have included the "Unique Properties" field at a request made by the Federal Reserve Bank, which uses RealtyTracs data for market and risk analysis.The number most commonly reported includes the default notice (NOD) auction sale notice (NOS) and actual bank repossessions.  This means that a property that ... 07/30/2007

What is a "Free Foreclosure List"?by John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty   I have to hand it to my fellow REALTORS®, they certainly know how to market, if nothing else.  Some would argue that is a REALTORS® most important job - marketing - or getting the word out.The change in the market of 2007 has brought all sorts of people into the foreclosure and preforeclosure niche of selling real estate.One of the latest techniques that REALTORS® are using is offering a "Free List of Foreclosures".  OK, I suppose I could see the value in that, if it was legitimate.One of the brokers in town has a sign out in front of their office with those exact words on it.  I was talking with a friend of mine - outside of the business.  Actually my friend was asking me what that was all about, ... 07/28/2007

Wells Fargo is Singing the Subprime Bluesby John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty                                                           I just found a short article in a newsletter I subscribe to (Real Trends) that is reporting that Wells Fargo is singing the subprime blues.According to the article Wells Fargo shut its non-prime wholesale lending business, earlier this week.  This division of Wells Fargo has been responsible for the processing and funding of the loans for third party mortgage brokers.It may have only represented 1.6% of the residential mortgage volume over at Wells Fargo, but that amounts to 397.6 Billion  with a "B" dollars in 2006.  "Wells Fargo will continue to offer non-prime loans in channels where the company has direct relationships with consumer... 07/28/2007

Countrywide is Singing the Default Bluesby John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty   I just found a short article in a newsletter I subscribe to (Real Trends) that is reporting that Countrywide is singing the default blues.According to the article even their good credit loans are increasing the trend towards default as more and more are having trouble making the mortgage payments.  They acknowledge that the trend had been focused on the subprime market, but now acknowledge that the problem is creeping through their portfolio.Prime mortgages with a 30 day late had increased to 3.1 per cent for the 2nd quarter, compared to only 2.1 percent just a year earlier.As expected the subprime borrowers had a more horrifying story to tell with their delinquencies climbing for 15.3 percent... 07/28/2007

And where are Interest Rates Headed?  by John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty   I am wondering what the opinion of the mortgage community is on the topic of interest rates.  As for me, I think they will drop based on what has happened this week.There have been some very interesting developments take place in the financial world this week.  Before I get into what I know and make a prediction or two, I must admit that I am as much a layperson when it comes to economics as the next person.  My driving force on understanding anything to do with money supplies and economic is the age old principal of supply and demand.So, lets look at what happened.  First the Chairman Bernanke of the Federal Reserve (The FED) said we are in for a continued cooling of the housing market.Then Fre... 07/28/2007

Pet Peeve:  Don't Show Showings  by John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty   There really ought to be a law...or at least some sort of guideline in the NAR Code of Ethics about a REALTOR® that makes an appointment to show a property and then doesn't show up - not even the courtesy of a phone call.Look, I know life happens and we can't always meet everyone of our obligations - for whatever reason.  It seems as if excuses are easy to come up with - my favorite is that my dog is having kittens...In any event, as a Professional REALTOR® that sets an appointment for a showing, you expect the home to be ready to be shown, don't you.  You don't expect to find someone n bed.  You don't want to see a sink of dirty dishes and you don't want to see piles of dirty laundry - now do you?S... 07/28/2007

ActiveRain - I Need Your Help.  Is This a Short Sale?  How Would You Counsel this Seller?  by John Occhi, Hemet REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty   Last night I received an email (thank you ActiveRain) that I followed up with a 45 minute phone call this morning from a homeowner who knows he is on the steps of disaster as his 80/20 sub-prime adjustable loan (ARM)already reset once increasing the principal and interest from $2200 a month to over $2900 monthly payment...and is expected to reset once again in under two months.  He has a homeowner's association payment of $300 due every month on top of his mortgage payment.  I am not sure what the insurance runs, probably not a big bullet.  The taxes however are getting ready to be 3 years delinquent - to the tune of roughly $10,000 that he c... 07/28/2007

Stop Your Foreclosure:  Bankruptcy   by John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty  Prior to October 17, 2005 it was a fairly easy process to stop a foreclosure through fining a bankruptcy (BK).  Without getting to deep into the process, since I am a REALTOR® and not an attorney and am not practicing law or giving any legal advise here, I am just stating what I recall of the process.We'll refer to the pre change in the law in October 2005 as "the old days".  Back in the old days, many would file both a Chapter 7 and a Chapter 13 for a process that was referred to in slang terms as a Chapter 20 bankruptcy.  A chapter 7 discharged all of the debtor's unsecured debts and then the secured delinquencies such as car payments and mortgage payments were rolled into one debt that was p... 07/28/2007

Stop Your Foreclosure:  Break Through Loan   by John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR®   Mission Grove Realty  When a Hemet homeowner recently asked me about helping stop his foreclosure, he asked me what a "Break Through Loan" was and if it would be appropriate for him in his situation.I was not at first familiar with the term, Break Through Loan.  With a little investigation I figured out it was what I thought - a fancy name for a hard money loan for someone in the preforeclosure process.Before looking to hard money lenders, the Hemet Homeowner was advised to talk with his lender to see if there was some sort of other terms that could be worked out.  I advised the homeowner that, as long as the information was 100% honest on their loan application, then to be 100% honest with the lender about ... 07/27/2007

If you are looking for foreclosure property, bank owned property and other distressed properties in Hemet, Riverside County, you have come to the right place.Graham Holmes and his Asset Management Team have a large inventory of Bank Owned properties at highly discounted prices. With access to some of the most powerful tools available to locate Bank Owned (REO) properties, foreclosed properties and other distressed property throughout Riverside and San Bernardino Counties of Southern California Graham will help you locate the right Lender Owned, Bank Owned, Foreclosure Property for you..Without cost to you, my experienced staff can:Provide CURRENT information about available properties.Provide detailed area information and community resources.Provide the tools you need to make an informe... 07/26/2007

Investor Mistakes that Can Really Bite - Contractor's Feesby John Occhi REALTORRealtor Consultant to Foreclosure InvestorsView More Articles on Investor Mistakes That Can Really Bit by Clicking Here Don't get me wrong, contractors earn their money, especially if you negotiate fairly and have a clear understanding of what will be done with what materials and how much you will pay. The problem that I have fallen victim of and seen on many occasions is allowing a contractor to be paid in full before the job is done. I don't know what it is about these guys, but they always seem to have a reason why they need to get paid, as the job is nearing the completion.It is typically some hard luck story. They will usually come in and work really hard for a day or two and then say that they need some... 07/23/2007

Investor Mistakes that Can Really Bite – Tenant Screening by John Occhi REALTOR Realtor Consultant to Foreclosure Investors View More Articles on Investor Mistakes That Can Really Bit by Clicking Here If you are going to invest in real estate you are going to have to deal with a tenant – sooner or later. Even in your perfect business model of flipping properties, every now and then you are going to get stuck holding the bag longer than you wanted to and the only way out will be to rent the place.Perhaps the deal is such a good one that you end up wanting to keep the property – maybe you have some insight on future growth and believe you will see great appreciation in a short time, if you could just hang on to the property.Tenants are not all bad. Many times they become your buyers and ... 07/23/2007

California Foreclosures and Deficiencies Balances by John Occhi, Hemet CA REALTOR   Mission Grove REALTYI just received an email from a member of the public, Reid Pi*zz*   who found Brad Andersohn's  post The California Foreclosure Process & Timeline.                                                                                                Reid is in a jam and on top of that his wife is stressed.  Anyone who has read much of my work knows how I feel about keeping the wife happy, I cover my personal story in great detail in the blog article I wrote called, Why Do I work the PreForeclosure Market and Want to Help? Reid is upside down in his mortgage.  He owes $305K on a home that is worth $250K and the mortgage has triggered to a new higher payment that he and his family just cannot... 07/21/2007

The Importance of Pictures In the MLSby John Occhi REALTOR®Hemet CA Real EstateIn my previous post, I wrote about Pictures and the MLS rules which require that all listings have a photo.  I questioned why a REALTOR® would not include a picture and deducted because it is nothing more than be lazy.  If I'm wrong, I'm sure I'll get an earful on that post.In this post, I want to address the importance of pictures.    I just did a quick snapshot of the local Hemet market in my zip code, 92544.  I looked exclusively at the 3 bedroom 2 bath home with activity in the last 90 days only.This is what I found:Active Listings              112 ListingsPending Sales                11 ListingsSold Properties               16 ListingsExpired Listings              38 ListingsSo, I wanted to see how impo... 07/21/2007

Investor Mistakes that Can Really Bite - Tenantsby John Occhi REALTORRealtor Consultant to Foreclosure Investors View More Articles on Investor Mistakes That Can Really Bit by Clicking Here All Real Estate Investing boils down to one of two strategies. Granted, their are many subsets of each real estate investment strategy - but every investment is either a "Buy and Sell" investment scenario or a "Buy and Hold" your real estate situation. What else can there possibly be?I prefer my involvement to focus on the quick cash flow "buy and sell" strategy - or flipping as it is often called. Flipping will generate huge amounts of cash flow, if done properly. I do believe though that the "Buy and Hold" method of real estate investing is the true path to long term wealth.However, like so many ot... 07/19/2007

Investor Mistakes that Can Really Bite - Contractorsby John Occhi REALTORRealtor Consultant to Foreclosure Investors View More Articles on Investor Mistakes That Can Really Bit by Clicking Here I thought I would start a series of articles that if they only help one real estate Investor or just one Hemet homeowner than I will be satisfied. The series will document mistakes that I have made and mistakes that I have seen my Real Estate Investor clients make when purchasing real estate in Hemet California and other parts of the state as well.This first article is inspired by a recent event that I choose not to get into. Let's just say that communication is a critical element to any...scratch that EVERY real estate investment deal. Without effective communication, it is a case of the blind ... 07/19/2007