Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 2, 2012. The Antelope Valley Winery events are in the works, this Saturday the Wine & Chocolate Pairing Class will be held, there will be two more Pairing Classes in 2012, “Extreme Appetizers” and “The Savory Side of Chocolate”.  The Spring Bottling date will also be set sometime in late April or early May and the 2nd Quarter. The Wine Club Re­lease Party will closely follow. Mark your calen­dars for the opening of the 2012 AV Winery Farmers Market on May 5th, 2012, 9am to Noon with a special Opening Day Celebration!  The Farmers Market will be open through the last Saturday in November. Always something happening in the Antelope Valley. Janet O'Brian is a Certified Short Sales Specialist in Calif... 02/24/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 23, 2012. Janet and I  have been doing Short sale for over 3 years and what was true in February 2010 still holds today, be wary of short sale scams.  Janet O'Brian is a Certified Short Sales Specialist in California is ready to help you with your Situation… Short Sale  Monthend Numbers Jan '12 Dec Nov Oct Sep Aug July June May Apr Mar Feb Jan '11 Listed  601 599 732 797 813 679 631 646 620 561 690 443 550 Pending  581 522 572 568 585 542 468 502 518 487 504 414 392 Sold  416 476 467 557 545 413 369 392 374 384 389 299 297 % CHG Month over Month Listed  0.3% -22.2% -8.9% -2.0% 16.5% 7.1% -2.4% 4.0% 9.5% -23.0% 35.8% -24.2% Pending  10.2% -9.6% 0.7% -3.0% 7.4% 13.7% -7.3% -3.2% 6.0% -3.5% 17.9% 5.3... 02/23/2012

This seems to be all over the web these days as real estate sites get the word out and, there’s a lot of paid advertising on the Google about getting bucks for selling short. The phrases are all about the same: “Get Paid to Short Sale My Home” is the most prevalent.  Also we see the bank’s name inserted in front like Chase paid me cash to sell short, Wachovia Paid me to Short Sale my home and alike.     Take care, some of what you are seeing is false information; remember “if it sounds too good to be true”.  Chase bank is offering a program currently known as "List Assist" where if you as the seller qualify Chase may (and that’s a big MAY) pay you up to $35,000.00 to complete a short sale.   Qualifications for the Chase Bank short sale program are that your loan must be what is known as... 02/23/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 21, 2012. Rumor has it that Bank of America will be dropping their Short Sale system Equator soon.  The system is plagued with problems called “glitches” and we all know to well the strange things that pop up in our e-mail.  We would welcome a new and improved short sale system.  Janet O'Brian is a Certified Short Sales Specialist in California is ready to help you with your Situation… Short Sale  Monthend Numbers Jan '12 Dec Nov Oct Sep Aug July June May Apr Mar Feb Jan '11 Listed  601 599 732 797 813 679 631 646 620 561 690 443 550 Pending  581 522 572 568 585 542 468 502 518 487 504 414 392 Sold  416 476 467 557 545 413 369 392 374 384 389 299 297 % CHG Month over Month Listed  0.3% -22.2% -8.9... 02/21/2012

West Palmdale, California Real EstateWe here at the Gockel Group, continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends. Below you will find West Palmdale real estate statistics for the last seven days.Total inventory today is: 165   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 83Number of homes entering the market in the last 7 days: 16    Of these, the number that are short pays is: 6Number of homes entering escrow in the last 7 days: 10Number of homes closing escrow (sold) in the last 7 days: 13   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 2Number of homes cancelled/removed/expired/withdrawn from the market in the last 7 days: 9ALL DATA WAS DERIVED FROM THE "GREATER ANTELOPE VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®" AND IS DEEMED ... 02/20/2012

What if I owe what my home is worth? Even if you owe exactly what your home is worth, you may still need to do a short sale in order to pay for the costs of the sale (Realtor fees, Title Policy and other seller closing costs). Why not just let my lender foreclose?NO! What is the first thing banks do when they foreclose on a property? Hand it over to a real estate agent to get rid of it quick! The foreclosure process is a legal process. It involves attorneys and it costs MONEY. Once they get the property back via foreclosure they must often sell it for MUCH LESS than market value and pay Realtor commissions and all customary closing costs. Doesn’t it make more sense for them to take at or a little below fair market value before foreclosing? And, even when they do sell it through foreclos... 02/17/2012

Over the next few days I’ll be posting some questions Janet and I get from short sale sellers and our best practice answers. Why does my property have negative equity? Here are a few common reasons: Person bought at the height of the market and the market has now declined or paid more than the property was worth. The area has become less desirable for any number of reasons, so property values have declined. Person purchased the home with little or no money down and wants to sell within a few years of purchase… and the property value has not increased during that time. Therefore, costs associated with selling the property may create a balance due at closing, Person refinanced the home (with a high appraisal value) and now has little or no equity. Person bought in a brand new subdivision ... 02/17/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 17, 2012. Over the next few days I’ll be posting some questions Janet and I get from short sale sellers and our best practice answers. What is a Short Sale? In the world of Real Estate, a short sale refers to the sale of real property for an amount less than the amount owed on the property. In the short sale scenario, the bank agrees to accept less than the full balance due on the debt, and usually ‘forgives’ all or a large portion of the difference. How will the Short Sale affect my credit? Short Sales are still a relatively new concept. Banks have the option of submitting the short sale to the credit bureau as "Paid in Full" or "Settled for less than full balance". As far as your credit score is... 02/17/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 16, 2012. Home affordability look up in Q4 for Californians, California’s housing affordability rising to its peak level in the fourth-quarter of 2011 thus matching the record high set in 2009.  The rise is for the most part is due to the lower home prices and record-low interest rates.  The proportion of home buyers who can afford to purchase a (resale) median-priced single-family home in California rose to 55% in the fourth quarter of 2011, up from 52 percent in third-quarter 2011 and from 50 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, according to (HAI).  Home buyers needed to earn a minimum annual income of $57,750 to qualify for the purchase of a $282,350 statewide median-priced, existing single-f... 02/16/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 15, 2012. So we are starting to hear rumblings that this summer in the Antelope Valley, Palmdale and Lancaster will have extra fun stuff going on.  But in case you need something sooner the Palmdale Playhouse is presenting the Palmdale Concert and Symphonic Orchestras’  “A Little Bit of Night Music” directed by Patricia Graham this Saturday, February 18, 2012 at 7:30 pm, featuring Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Symphony No. 40, a work of indestructible beauty. The Amgen Tour of California Stage 6 Starting Location has been selected and it’s in Palmdale! Amgen officials have selected Marie Kerr Park as the starting location for Stage 6 of the race, scheduled for Friday, May 18. The Palmdale DryTown water... 02/15/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 14, 2012. At the annual Keller Williams Realty Convention FAMILY REUNION in Florida this year Keller William’s CEO Mark Willis shared some interesting directions KW is heading.  The first Keller Williams Realty franchise overseas – KW Vietnam, and Chris Heller, president of KW Worldwide announced the launch. “As we began looking for opportunities to expand outside the U.S. and Canada, our primary goal was always to find the right leadership first. We know that Paul Mason [the new president of KW Vietnam], along with the other leaders we are partnering with, share our belief system and our commitment to grow the Keller Williams culture,” said Heller. He also announced that the company was in varyin... 02/14/2012

West Palmdale, California Real EstateWe here at the Gockel Group, continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends. Below you will find West Palmdale real estate statistics for the last seven days.Total inventory today is: 166   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 83Number of homes entering the market in the last 7 days: 27    Of these, the number that are short pays is: 8Number of homes entering escrow in the last 7 days: 17Number of homes closing escrow (sold) in the last 7 days: 5   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 2Number of homes cancelled/removed/expired/withdrawn from the market in the last 7 days: 14ALL DATA WAS DERIVED FROM THE "GREATER ANTELOPE VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®" AND IS DEEMED ... 02/13/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 13, 2012. National Mortgage Settlement, What this means to you. Homeowners in need of a loan modification including first and second lien principal reduction if they qualify could see their principal cut by around $20,000.  The servicers have up to $17 billion in principal reduction and other forms of loan modification relief nationwide.  And with only these banks participating Ally/GMAC, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo your loan must be with one of them and not owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to participate in the program. Borrowers who are current but underwater will be able to refinance at today’s historically low interest rates.  Servicers will have to provide up to $3... 02/13/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 10, 2012. PALMDALE - The City of Palmdale’s South Antelope Valley Emergency Services (SAVES) food and shelter program received a generous donation of $10,000 from Yard House restaurants as part of the Round It Up America® program. The check was presented by Yard House Manager Gil Vance and accepted by SAVES Coordinator Patricia Morales, and Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford.  Yard House corporate donated $5,000 and the Palmdale Yard House matched it bringing the total to $10,000. “The generosity of Yard House and its customers is nothing short of amazing,” said SAVES Coordinator Patricia Morales. “Through their kindness, families in need in the South Antelope Valley will receive essential services to hel... 02/10/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 9, 2012. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced the first step of a Real-Estate Owned (REO) Initiative targeted at the hardest-hit metropolitan areas announced in August 2011. Investors interested in participating may "pre-qualify" to establish eligibility to bid on transactions in the initial pilot phase as well as subsequent phases. The REO Initiative will allow qualified investors to purchase pools of foreclosed properties with the requirement to rent the purchased properties for a specified number of years. This rental period could provide relief for local housing markets that continue to be depressed by the volume of foreclosed properties, and provide additional rental options to... 02/09/2012

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), Wells Fargo & Co., Citigroup Inc., Ally Financial Inc. and Bank of America Corp. are seeing the light now paying big bucks to Homeowners to Avoid Foreclosure, with a Short Sale… Recently, BoA sent out letters to over 19,000 Florida homeowners as part of a pilot program. The program is offering incentives of as much as $20,000, or 5 percent of the unpaid loan balance, BoA spokesperson, said in an e-mail. The program expired in December and the Charlotte, North Carolina-based bank hasn’t decided whether to introduce it in other states, she said. About 15 percent of the homeowners agreed to participate in the program, she said.  It seems that the size of the payment may have little or nothing to do with sales price. JPMorgan gave one Phoenix homeowner $20,000 af... 02/08/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 8, 2012. The Palmdale Playhouse will hold open auditions for the upcoming Enhanced Readers Theatre “The Triangle Factory Fire Project” on Friday, February 10 at 6 pm, and on Saturday, February 11 at 10 am at the Palmdale Playhouse, 38334 10th Street East in Palmdale. Roles are available for five men and four females each playing multiple parts. Performers should be prepared to read sides from the scripts, which will be provided at the audition. Saturday, March 25, 1911, 4:45 pm. In the Triangle Waist Factory off downtown Manhattan’s Washington Square – where 500 immigrant workers toil fourteen-hour days making lady’s dresses – a cigarette is tossed into a bin of fabric scraps. Despite desperate eff... 02/08/2012

East Palmdale, California Real EstateWe here at the Gockel Group, continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends. Below you will find East Palmdale real estate statistics for the last seven days.Total inventory today is: 162   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 85Number of homes entering the market in the last 7 days: 18   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 6Number of homes entering escrow in the last 7 days: 17Number of homes closing escrow (sold) in the last 7 days: 8   Of these, the number that are short pays is: Number of homes cancelled/removed/expired/withdrawn from the market in the last 7 days: 11ALL DATA WAS DERIVED FROM THE "GREATER ANTELOPE VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®" AND IS DEEMED RE... 02/07/2012

Real Estate Trends - Palmdale, Lancaster, Quartz Hill and the Greater Antelope Valley Feb 1, 2012. January saw a drop in inventory in the Antelope Valley with only 1,500 Single Family homes listed and a bit more then 1,000 in the core area.  Activity has been good with only sold not betting December’s numbers. If reason holds and that is a big if prices should start to rise in the short term as inventory dips.  We do have a small amount of bank-owned homes staged to move into the market however the quantity making a small impact. So in the Antelope Valley, Palmdale Lancaster area in Los Angeles County the worst is over and short sales dominate.  REO’s are all but dead, Traditional Sale are sitting in the wings… Janet O'Brian is a Certified Short Sales Specialist in California is ready ... 02/01/2012

East Palmdale, California Real EstateWe here at the Gockel Group, continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends. Below you will find East Palmdale real estate statistics for the last seven days.Total inventory today is: 161   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 80Number of homes entering the market in the last 7 days: 17   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 5Number of homes entering escrow in the last 7 days: 21Number of homes closing escrow (sold) in the last 7 days: 15   Of these, the number that are short pays is: 4Number of homes cancelled/removed/expired/withdrawn from the market in the last 7 days: 14ALL DATA WAS DERIVED FROM THE "GREATER ANTELOPE VALLEY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®" AND IS DEEMED ... 01/31/2012