ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate

Guest Author:

Bob Chiodo, CFP

Equity Home Mortgage, LLC

http://www.rescommlending.com/

Apply Here

Estimated Rates for the week of February 8, 2010*:

• 30 yr fixed=4.75 – 5.00
• FHA/VA=4.75 - 5.00
• OR VA=4.50 w/1.5 pts/4.625 w/1.0
• Jumbo (30 yr fixed)=5.50 – 5.75
• 5/1 ARM=conforming 3.625 – 4.000; jumbo 3.875 – 4.250

As you can see, rates stayed about the same from last week. I replaced the 7/1 quote and went with a 5/1 since the pricing has been very aggressive. Although it is short term, it’s an important option to review if a borrower is certain to move within five years. There has been a lot of discussion on what will happen to rates once the Fed quits buying Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS) at the end of this quarter. One analyst suggested rates could jump by 2.00%. Freddie Mac reported that they anticipate rates could go up 1.00% when the Fed – who is the largest purchaser of mortgage backed securities – quits buying. Other analysts are suggesting a minor increase of 10 to 30 basis points (.10% - .30%). Some even speculate that the Fed would jump back in and purchase the MBS’s should rates move too high. As is typical, there is a wide variance in opinions. It appears that no one thinks that the MBS market will return to levels anywhere near to where the market was before the Fed’s intervention. Comments like this strongly suggest that those potential homebuyers who are waiting should buy now and not later.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, weekly mortgage application volume rose a seasonally adjusted 21% from the previous week. Applications for refinancing rose 26.3 percent while purchase money applications jumped 10.3%. The average 30 year fixed rate was 5.01 with 1.04 points; 15 year mortgages were 4.33 with 1.17 points. Some good news on the FHA condo front, our company recently received HUD approval on two different condo complexes in 12 days from start to finish. That is a lot better than the 6-8 weeks that we were quoting. For all of those involved in condominiums, especially Association management companies, it’s important to learn the approval process. And remember, the approval needs to be updated every two years.

I haven’t discussed reverse mortgages for quite some time. Most, if not all, reverse mortgages are originated as an FHA loan. These loans – including reverse mortgages for purchasing a home – are great programs for the right individuals. Fixed rate reverse mortgages are currently available in the mid-fives. Many seniors who have been feeling the pinch in these tough economic times have been refinancing their homes with this product. Since there are no credit score requirements, reverse mortgages have saved more than a few senior’s homes from foreclosure.

Let’s all have a great week!

*Rates quoted are for the use of Realtors® and others in the real estate/financial service industries. They are not meant to be a quote for an individual situation. Rates change daily and those above are only listed to assist market participants by keeping them informed of current interest rates. Credit scores, down payment, and other risk related issues may change the rate. Quotes are usually shown for a 30 day lock period and a 1% origination or discount fee.

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

You’ve read it here, in other blogs, the newspapers and on the news - that the million dollar and above housing market in Lake Oswego was stuck this past year. I’ve written in the past about those million $ houses and since we’ve just completed a year and a decade, I thought now would be a good time to see where we’ve been and where we’re at with the high-end market in Lake Oswego.

If you lived in California, that million dollar market dropped by almost 24% this past year alone. Lake Oswego has had this market activity in the over $1 million price range this past decade (includes single family, condos, townhouses and attached):

2000

• # of Houses Sold: 12
• High Sold: $6,950,000
• Low Sold: $1,015,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $325
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 92.66%

2001

• # of Houses Sold: 18
• High Sold: $3,985,000
• Low Sold: $1,000,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $325
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 85.42%

2002

• # of Houses Sold: 28
• High Sold: $3,215,000
• Low Sold: $1,020,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $310
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 96.43%

2003

• # of Houses Sold: 17
• High Sold: $2,125,000
• Low Sold: $1,030,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $275
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 98.15%

2004

• # of Houses Sold: 55
• High Sold: $4,500,000
• Low Sold: $999,900
• Price per sq. ft.: $278
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 96%

2005

• # of Houses Sold: 71
• High Sold: $3,275,000
• Low Sold: $1,000,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $335
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 97.78%

2006

• # of Houses Sold: 97
• High Sold: $2,687,500
• Low Sold: $1,275,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $325
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 94.44%

2007

• # of Houses Sold: 124
• High Sold: $5,250,000
• Low Sold: $999,900
• Price per sq. ft.: $330
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 96.5

2008

• # of Houses Sold: 59
• High Sold: $3,150,000
• Low Sold: $1,039,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $341
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 97.6%

2009

• # of Houses Sold: 43
• High Sold: $4,987,500
• Low Sold: $1,049,000
• Price per sq. ft.: $344
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 90.6%

January 2010

• # of Houses Active: 61
• # of Housing Pending 5
• # of Houses Sold: 3
• High Sold: $1,350,000
• Low Sold: $1,062,500
• Price per sq. ft.: $233
• Ratio of Original List $ vs. Sold $: 85.21%
• Months of Inventory: 20.3

The high-end market in Lake Oswego didn’t suffer in falling prices over the last 10 years as perhaps you thought they would have. For 2009, average sale prices in the metro Portland area dropped by 12.2%, compared to 2008 when prices dropped by 11.2%. However, the Lake Oswego high-end market does need further price reductions to reduce their 20.3 months of inventory. Likewise, specifically Lake Oswego’s average price increased to $539,500 at the end of 2009 from 2008, when the average sales price was $509,800.

January 2010 did see prices decrease much like they did in 2001 in Lake Oswego. In 2005 and 2008, Lake Oswego had the least amount of price reductions and 2007 had the most sales. Without additional price reductions, however, the high-end Lake Oswego market will continue to have a glut of housing for sale.

Recently, I’ve been showing a lot of houses in NE Portland - which is the hottest segment of our market with the lowest number of homes for sale. There’s a house my client likes and it’s at $279 a sq. ft. compared to the most recent stats for Lake Oswego which are at $233 a sq. ft. You always hear how expensive Lake Oswego is, but if you look at the likes of Northest Portland, that isn’t necessarily the case.

 ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Guest Author:

Steve Emory

Sr. Mortgage Banker Loan Officer

Pacific Residential Mortgage, LLC

http://www.seloan.com

We have two items coming up soon, that will have a large negative impact on First Time Buyers (FTB) or other buyers going FHA. The FHA UpFront MI is going from 1.75% to 2.25% of the base Loan amount on 04/01/2010, and the Tax Credit ends with offers not accepted by 04/30/2010. These two items can have a major impact! Example: on a $275,000 Purchase Price going FHA with a FTB

• Down Payment $9,625
• Base Loan Amount $265,375

Before 04/30/10 UpFront MI FHA $4,644 (1.75%), Tax Credit $8,000

After 04/30/10 UpFront MI FHA $5,971 (2.25%), Tax Credit $0

Difference: $9,327 More after 04/30/2010 There are other rumors that FHA may implement the 3% from current 6% limit on seller paid items about the same time as well, another hit for FTB. Considering it takes 35-45 days to close a normal FHA transaction these days, it is important that buyers going this route make offers very soon. You are running out of time to save some real $$.

 ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

A couple of things happened recently that reminded me of a post I’ve been wanting to write. Selling real estate has taught me many life lessons. I was reminded of one the other day.

My day was booked with appointments. Going to the first appointment, the customer had a conflict and forgot to call me. Not a problem as I went and did some things I had been meaning to do but never get around to. Went to my second appointment and found out that the appointment wasn’t transferred to a new calendar. Not a problem, again I went and made some stops on a “To Do” list of mine. Real estate has taught me more times than I can count to be flexible. My rule book goes something like this. If Plan A doesn’t work, I go to Plan B, or C or D or how many other alphabet letters I need to eliminate.

Early in my career we didn’t have Mortgage Brokers which meant that when I had a client not only did I have to call every single bank to check what their interest rates were, what their loan requirements were, etc. but also to determine if my client would qualify. We would get a sheet with the interest rates weekly, but as you know things always change. There weren’t a lot of financing options, but we called every bank, including checking on government loan programs, individually. We would then submit loan applications to the appropriate lender. The client would get denied, I’d go on to the next lender, that loan would get denied as well. We Realtors® needed to keep working a plan and I learned that you don’t give up, you just go on to Plan B, etc. and change your direction.

In fact, the other evening I received a call from a long-time Realtor® friend who left the business eons ago and with whom I once shared an office. During the course of the call, she said she remembered my rule book and uses the Plan A, Plan B approach in her life still today. It eliminates a lot of stress. I’m never upset when my Plan A doesn’t work because I always have my Plan B. I relearned that lesson again the other day. And, today I didn’t have a post written as I’ve been busy with real estate, but because I have some pre-written posts, you’re getting my Plan B today.

 ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Moving has become a common aspect of the American way of life. Some families are old hands at relocating, others will be moving perhaps for the first or only time. But whether a family is a veteran or a rookie in the moving process, one aspect of moving that is frequently overlooked or left to chance is the effect which relocation has on children. When you change addresses, you will move many valuable possessions, but none will be as precious or as vulnerable to the move as your children. It’s important to give them the special attention they deserve and need.

One of the unfortunate myths about relocation is that school-age children should not be moved until summer. Many families have undergone considerable inconvenience just to avoid the move while school is in session.

However, since school is a primary source for making friends, a summertime move will place your child in unfamiliar surroundings at a time when making friends is at a minimum. When school opens, the child enters the first-day chaos as a stranger. The teacher, meanwhile, facing a new class, may not be able to identify the child’s discomfort and need for special attention. By making a move during the school year, however, the child moves from social setting to another. Being the “new kid” makes him or her feel special, so the child generally receives special attention from other children and the teacher as well. I hear many times that parents want to wait until the end of spring to put their house on the market so that the family can make their move in the summer.

Families who move their children during the school year have a less stressful relocation in their new home. Children get to make friends quicker with the neighborhood kids if they meet them during the school year and have friendships in place before summer. Also, talking to the children about why you are moving, what the new home will be like and how each of them can contribute to the success of the family’s relocation should be a top priority. I personally went to three grammar schools while moving, two in the fourth grade alone and know how hard it can be on a child.

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Ellen Dunham-Jones recently co-authored a new book entitled Retrofitting Suburbia.

The birth of suburbs was in the 1950s and 60s, half of all households lived there and most of those households had children and stay at home moms. Since 2000, two-thirds of suburban households no longer fit that Ozzie-and-Harriet stereotype.

Demographers predict that 75% to 85% of new households through 2025 won’t have children for several reasons, an aging population, more single-person households and Generation Y waiting longer to have kids. Households want more compact living places and public places that encourage interaction with a greater diversity of people, an urban concept with walkable blocks, public spaces and LEED-certified mixed-used buildings that will function as a downtown.

Back in January 2009, I wrote a post about abandoned or failing shopping malls becoming housing of the future. Dunham-Jones’ book goes on to say that to appeal to today’s households, suburbs need an urban approach to development. Something I’ve been saying all along in many of my posts about builders building smaller houses for seniors and boomers wanting to be closer to amenities, shopping and transportation.

Further in a post I wrote The Line Drawn Around Portland, there will be a million more people living in Portland in the next 25 years. Planners want those million people to live in our core area and not in the suburbs. The UGB (Urban Growth Boundary) may not be expanded anytime soon. So where will everyone live if in fact the majority of people want all these amenities - transportation, shopping, and everything close-by within walking distance? The suburbs during this economic crisis and recessions in the past have all experienced longer market times, higher inventories and lower prices. Some suburbs will retain their values because they are perceived as prestigious communities. Other suburban areas will transform themselves. What exists today is new construction in the Portland metro area filled with high-rise luxury towers close to shops, restaurants and parks, but have also had difficulty selling during the last two going on three years. 

Where will all those people live? Perhaps Portland’s future lies in exactly what Dunham-Jones’ book suggests. The most successful shopping mall retrofits have that urban-type layout already superimposed in them. They could become mixed-use town centers with housing, stores, offices, movie theaters, and parks. Homeowners who live there wouldn’t feel isolated and wouldn’t be dependent on cars as some of us in the suburbs are today.

I facetiously suggested in my post mentioned above, that shopping malls could become the housing of our future and that Washington Sq. and/or Clackamas Town Center would make ideal housing. My prediction may not be too far off. Builders are also starting to build those smaller houses I’ve been ranting about. And, depending upon our housing recovery in Portland, we may indeed be seeing a redesign of Portland’s suburbs due to necessity with builders rethinking what their new construction will look like. The suburbs may no longer exist as we know them today but will they become extinct?

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Following are the stats for the month of December (not full year) 2008 vs. 2009 for the average sales price by area for single family residential, condos, townhouses and attached. We will be getting more year-end and 2009 data from RMLS® probably in their next report due out February 14 or thereabouts.

You might be surprised with the December results. There were several areas where prices increased, due to the first-time home buyer tax credits, foreclosures, etc. in those market areas. Our year-end stats will probably be more pertinent and interesting.

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

My link in yesterday’s post to the Gastronomy blog wasn’t correct and I fixed that. Here’s the link should you want to see it. My Lake Oswego Living.A Photo Blog is also on several travel sites including two European ones. In a future post, I will link to those as well.

The other day I watched the Charlie Rose show and Larry Summers spoke. Mr. Summers said that since the mid-1980s, globally and within the U.S. there has been a financial crisis every three years. In a couple of posts of mine last year, I stated that I saw the housing bubble start here in Portland with deregulation. The administration is working on laws, Larry Summers said, that will stick for at least the next thirty years and, at the very least, that we don’t have another financial crisis anytime soon. You can read the transcript and comments here.

Guest Author:

Bob Chiodo, CFP

Equity Home Mortgage, LLC

http://www.rescommlending.com/

Apply Here

Estimated Rates for the week of February 15, 2010*:

• 30 yr fixed=4.75 – 5.00
• FHA/VA=4.75 - 5.00
• OR VA=4.50 w/1.5 pts/4.625 w/1.0
• Jumbo (30 yr fixed)=5.50 – 5.75
• 7/1 ARM=conforming 3.875 – 4.125; jumbo 4.125 – 4.375

As you can see, interest rates really haven’t moved much since last week. When you take out the daily gyrations, rates have tended to be relatively stable. That said, we don’t know how long they will last this way. I attended a webinar on rates last week. The projections for future rates were all over the place. Morgan Stanley had 30 year mortgage rates at 7.00% by year’s end; Goldman Sachs had 3.25% in June (I like this one but I don’t see it); PIMCO had them at 5.50% at the end of the year. Although I will side with PIMCO, you can see that by the huge variance in the projections, no one knows what will happen. Today they are great….anything with a four in front of it is fantastic. I am hoping that all of the buyers out there realize that too!

Here’s the MBA application data for last week: The Market Composite Index decreased 10.9% from one week earlier. The refinance Index decreased 15.1% from the previous week. The purchase Index increased 2.8% compared with the previous week. The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 67.6% of total applications from 71.7% the previous week. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity increased to 4.7% from 4.1% of total applications from the previous week. The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 5.02% from 5.00%, with points decreasing to 1 from 1.05 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value loans. The average contract interest rate for 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.34% from 4.33%, with points decreasing to 1.14 from 1.19 (including the origination fee) for 80% loans.

I covered FHA last week and I wanted to briefly touch on the new FHA guidelines for condos. Up until FHA modified their new condominium approval requirements, Fannie, Freddie, and VA would normally accept an FHA approval. That is no longer the case. Although most existing FHA approved condos are still valid through the end of this year, we are seeing that – for conventional and VA loans – the complexes have to go through a much more vigorous approval process. The bottom-line for this area is to educate yourselves and your clients on the new requirements. Typically, the approval process will review the CC&R’s, the budget, Hazard Insurance and Fidelity coverage, the HOA’s budget and balance statement, and the HOA will need to complete a questionnaire. Lenders need to verify the owner occupancy ratio and the number of delinquent homeowners, among other items. Working together, the process can be done efficiently; however, it probably will lengthen the escrow period.

*Rates quoted are for the use of Realtors® and others in the real estate/financial service industries. They are not meant to be a quote for an individual situation. Rates change daily and those above are only listed to assist market participants by keeping them informed of current interest rates. Credit scores, down payment, and other risk related issues may change the rate. Quotes are usually shown for a 30 day lock period and a 1% origination or discount fee.

 ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Many of my posts on this blog and my Lake Oswego Living.A Photo Blog get linked to or reposted on other sites. I’m ok with that as long as there is a link back to my blog(s) and adheres to those conditions/licenses that are posted on both sites. Recently, my Lake Oswego Living.A Photo Blog was featured on a food site - Gastronomy Blog - and they linked back to me and met the conditions of my license, etc.

(Image copyright protected by Michael Mahlum and used with permission - do not copy)

What isn’t ok with me is when others use my photographs and posts without my permission. I think that’s called stealing. When I write or use other people’s words, I always link, or ask for permission. Once I forgot and got called to the cleaners. My intention is to always give credit where credit is due.

At the beginning of my blog, I purchased photos. People started copying them and still do. Those are copyright photos and I had permission to reuse them, but those who “steal” them from my site don’t. So, that’s not ok with me. Now I use free photo sites or use my own photos which are copyrighted too.

I employ sites to search people who copy my pictures or words. Sometimes I forget to check on those who are checking. The other day I checked and there was a big time organization copying my words and not honoring my license. A while back another local Realtor® used two of my posts word for word. That’s not ok with me and it’s against the law. However, ask me first for permission to repost and I might say yes.

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland

Lake Oswego celebrates its Centennial with a full year of events and activities. Here’s the website with the information. If you click on this link you will also see a series of videos about our town, Lake Oswego and some of its history. The city of Lake Oswego descends from the community known as Oswego which dates back to about 1850, when Alonzo A. Durham-an immigrant to Oregon in 1847 from New York State-established a sawmill on the banks of Sucker Creek, which drained into a small lake. The lake was known as Sucker Lake, which was changed in 1913 to Lake Oswego. Sucker Creek connected the lake to the Willamette River and was renamed Oswego Creek in 1927. The town of Oswego, which had been incorporated in 1910, changed its name to Lake Oswego in 1959.

The celebration began in mid-January with several events, however, in the month of February, things kick into full gear. Here’s only a partial list of some of the February events:

• February 1-28: Passport to 1910 - Lake Oswego Library
• February 2: Old Time Music - Lake Oswego Library
• February 3: The Ring of Antique Telephones - Oswego Heritage House
• February 4: 10×10 Trivia Challenge http://www.lakeoswego100.com/
• February 4: Art Show Opening & Exhibit - Graham’s Book and Stationery
• February 5: Pioneer Lunch - Adult Community Center
• February 7: Book Discussion with Mayor Hoffman and wife, Agnes - Lakeside Home & Gift
• February 8: Cover to Cover Book Club Quilters Tea - Lake Oswego Library
• February 8, 15, 22: Lake Oswego Writes. Lake Oswego Library
• February 9: One Room School House Panel Discussions
• February 10: Fascinating Stories of Everyday Lives - Lake Oswego Library
• February 10: Spelltainment Spelling Bee - Lakewood Center for the Arts
• February 11: Tales of a Secret Life In Lake Oswego - Lake Oswego Library
• February 11: 10×10 Trivia Challenge

To find out more go to http://www.lakeoswego100.com/ and join in on the fun.

ALL ABOUT…..Portland.Oregon.Real Estate, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. © Copyright 2008-2010 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws. Based on a Blog at WordPress. (For more local and national real estate information, go to http://www.bettyjung.com/). Portland