San Mateo-Foster City Real Estate News

For some reason people think that real estate agents only represent the interests of the seller in a transaction.  Sure, that was true years ago but it sure isn't the case today.  When I represent a buyer in a transaction I am their advocate, their coach, and their representative 100% of the time.  Did you know that it is possible for a buyer to have a contractual relationship between the agent and themselves, should they want one?  Yes, there's a form just for that so do ask about it if you think it necessary.

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Several years ago I was part of a community group discussing affordable housing in San Mateo County.  What was most interesting to me was how many people participating had no idea what affordable housing meant.  They made some pretty wild assumptions and generally that meant that it was ghetto housing.  As the two days concluded,

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I know you've heard that saying, "All Real Estate is Local" many times and in San Mateo County and especially in Burlingame and Hillsborough it's really so.  Lately, all media screams out at us on a daily basis how bad investing in real estate is and that everyone is being hurt by the sub-prime mess.  Guess what?  That just isn't the case.  Sure there are some areas of San Mateo County that truly are in trouble because of the sub-prime mess but certainly not Burlingame or Hillsborough.  The prices haven't dipped a bit all year. 

Let me give you a few facts about real estate that the media doesn't want you to know about.

• Over 30% of all homeowners are mortgage free.  They have paid it off.
• Only 5% of all loans are in trouble nation wide.  That means 95% of all mortgages are current.
• The United States National Debt is $9.9 Trillion.
• The sub-prime melt down is only $75 Billion, which isn't peanuts, but is only .0075% of the National Debt.
• 2007 looks to be thefourth best year in history for the housing industry with about 5.5 million homes changing hands.
• In 2005, 7.1 millions homes changed hands and 40% were non-owner occupied.  These were either second homes or speculators buying and selling.
• RealtyTrac reports that only 5 in 1000 households is in trouble with their mortgage today.

Have you heard any of this from the mainstream media?  I sure haven't but these are the numbers from  the National Association of Realtors and the Mortgage Bankers Association and both are in the midst of the real estate "crisis".  What you need to be aware of is that our immediate area, Millbrae south to San Carlos and then even further south into Santa Clara County down to Cupertino has no bubble.  What we have is a booming economy, too few homes for people to buy,  a pent up need for home ownership and the opportunity to put ones roots down into a community and stay a while.

There are loans out there but in order to buy a home you must have at least a 675 FICO score and money in the bank.  There are great buys in the East Bay, Daly City, and other areas in the Bay Area if you have money.  Its a great time to buy investment property and use it for rentals and build your real estate wealth.  Historically in the Bay Area, what has gone down has always moved back up and up again.

Will we see those amazing 20%, 30%, 50% appreciations we saw earlier this decade?  No, No, No.  We are back to a normal appreciation of 3%-%5 a year.  That's not bad considering your home is your castle and if you plan on staying in it for at least 5 years you'll do just fine, thank you. 

We're here to answer any questions you might have about the local real estate market.  It's a good time to buy a home to live in on the Peninsula, or for investment in other parts of our area.  Pop me an email with questions of the best places to look for a good ROI on this and I'm here to help you.

Lenders today generally use two standard guidelines to determine how much of a monthly mortgage payment you can afford and what your debt ratio is.  The first guideline is that your household should spend no more than 28 percent of its gross monthly income (before taxes) on monthly housing expenses, including: mortgage principal and interest, hazard insurance, real estate taxes and private mortgage insurance, if applicable. However, some lenders will stretch that figure to 33 percent or more in our high cost area.  The second guideline is that your monthly household expenses (as outlined above) plus other debt should not exceed 36 percent of your gross monthly income, although some lenders will stretch this to 38 to 40 percent. 

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Congratulations on the purchase of your new home! Now, for the next challenge: moving. I’ve talked about how to go through all of your “stuff” and pare things down and out here. Hold that Garage Sale for the final clearance, see here on tips for that. 

Next comes the move. Are you packing yourself or are the professionals doing it for you? If you’re doing it yourself, the following is a list of materials you’ll need. Moving companies and overnight mail businesses can furnish these, as well as specialized items including wardrobe boxes for clothing and heavy-duty boxes for china and other breakables. Liquor and computer stores also are good sources for sturdy boxes. Craigslist is a great resource for moving boxes, too.

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