Homeowners Insurance Help FAQ

Q: State Farm and Allstate have announced they will no longer sell new home insurance policies in California because of wildfire risks and an increase in construction costs. What does this mean for prospective homebuyers?

A: In certain high-risk areas of the state, there are very few insurance companies willing to write new policies. In some, State Farm was the last private insurance company writing policies. In those areas, the generally more-costly California FAIR plan may end up being the only property insurance available.

Q: How does this decision impact existing State Farm and Allstate policyholders?

A: State Farm and Allstate will continue to service and renew policies of existing clients in the state and offer new auto insurance policies. However, they will not be issuing any new property insurance policies for the time being in California.

Q: What will happen if more companies follow State Farm’s and Allstate’s moves?

A: There are still a wide range of companies writing policies in California. However, those willing to write new policies in higher risk areas are declining, and as stated above, with the departure of State Farm and Allstate, those in more high-risk areas may have no other option than the FAIR plan.

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Home Value Update: July 2023

Inventory is still very low in all areas. With interest rates approaching 7% again, doubtful that will change soon.

Carlsbad: Home prices are beginning to soften a bit. Active listings and the number of sold homes are up.

MonthAvg
Sold $
ChgDOMChgSold HomesChgAct. ListingsChg% List PriceYoY Chg
07/23$1,861,000-3%140%17915%1036%100.0%2.2%
06/23$1,920,0001%14-26%156-3%9723%100.3%3.0%
05/23$1,900,0006%19-17%16115%7922%100.0%2.4%
04/23$1,793,0008%23-26%1409%655%98.4%-0.8%
03/23$1,657,0004%310%12835%62-2%96.9%0.8%
02/23$1,594,000-0%3111%95-17%63-19%95.5%5.1%
01/23$1,598,000-2%280%114-10%78-21%95.9%4.1%
12/22$1,623,0002%28-7%127-19%99-14%94.4%4.9%
11/22$1,587,000-2%300%156-4%115-9%94.0%3.1%
10/22$1,614,000-5%3025%162-14%127-16%94.9%5.0%
09/22$1,703,600-5%2441%188-12%151-11%95.8%14.3%
08/22$1,802,279-1%1742%213-4%1691%98.9%22.4%
07/22$1,821,026-2%1220%223-4%16719%102.8%27.6%
06/22$1,863,6240%100%2334%14037%106.7%29.5%
05/22$1,855,9693%10-17%2236%10236%109.4%26.2%
04/22$1,807,47110%12-20%21012%759%109.5%23.3%
03/22$1,643,4658%15-12%187-6%69-5%107.4%16.1%
02/22$1,516,065-1%176%198-14%73-17%104.4%20.7%
01/22$1,535,059-1%160%231-17%88-15%103.0%30.4%
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Pricing Your Home for Sale

Because pricing your house correctly is so important, I promised to tell you all about what to avoid and how to get it right.

First- what to avoid:

  • Advice from friends
  • Advice from real estate agents working in a different community
  • Zestimates

And… please do ignore everything you hear about what your neighbor got for / paid for a house in your neighborhood last year – or even 3 months ago. Markets can and do change rapidly, so those prices have nothing to do with today’s prices.

Your friends probably mean well, but unless they’re agents working in your neighborhood, the information they have will not be accurate. The same is true for real estate agents in other communities.

National news reports national trends, but real estate is always local. Prices are affected by everything from neighboring business, to the jobs market, to the school district, to nearby zoning, to the price of utilities, to views, to access to transportation, and more.

Two neighborhoods less than a mile apart can have very different values.

What about Zestimates? Aren’t they accurate?

No. They have the same problem. The computer program that generates those estimates can compare many things, but has no way to calculate the wide variety of details that affect price. Agents across the country have found that Zestimates can be as much as 30% off the mark – either way.

How can you get it right?

By hiring a real estate agent who is familiar with your neighborhood, and who will prepare a true market analysis, taking all factors into consideration. It’s much the same as a fee appraisal, because it is based on comparison to homes as much like yours as possible. It also takes current market conditions into account.

If you’d like to know the current value of your home, get in touch. I’ll be happy to prepare a market analysis, so you know just where you stand.

What is my Home Worth

Mortgage Rates Inch Up

Mortgage rates inched up slightly after a significant decline last week. Higher interest rates continue to dampen activity in interest rate-sensitive sectors, such as housing. However, overall U.S. consumer confidence is unwavering, surging to a two-year high in the Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index for July 2023. Rising consumer confidence often leads to greater spending, which could drive more consumers into the housing market.

Rates

Lack of home listings is taking a toll on mortgage demand

Mortgage rates fell last week, but demand for home loans didn’t move higher as a result. Other aspects of today’s housing market are outweighing the benefit of lower mortgage rates right now, namely a lack of supply.

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) decreased to 6.40% from 6.45%, with points falling to 0.59 from 0.62 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. It had been over 7% just a month ago.

Mortgage applications to purchase a home, however, dropped 4% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index. Demand was 35% lower than the same week one year ago.

“Spring has arrived, but the housing market is missing the customary burst in listings and purchase activity that typically mark the season. After four weeks of increasing purchase application activity, volume declined a bit this week even with another small drop in mortgage rates,” said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s chief economist.

New listings were down 20% year over year in March, according to Realtor.com, and total inventory was about half of what it was in March 2019, pre-Covid pandemic.

“Although the mortgage rate for conforming balance loans declined by five basis points over the week to 6.40%, the mortgage rate for jumbo loans increased by nine basis points to 6.36%,” added Fratantoni. “While we have seen relative weakness at the high end of the housing market in recent months, the divergence in rates suggests that banks may be tightening credit in response to recent challenges, preserving balance sheet capacity as deposit balances have declined.”

Original Article

Home Value Update: December 2022

Downward pressure on home values continues, however it weakened somewhat with Carlsbad and Oceanside home values going positive for the month of December.

Home values peaked in the June, July, August time frame, depending on the area.

Average Sold price, Days on Market, Number of Homes Sold, Active Listings on the market and the % of List Price the Seller Received. Along with the month to month change. I have also added in the Year over Year change to value.

Carlsbad: Down -12.9% from June 2022 Peak

MonthAvg
Sold $
ChgDOMChgSold
Homes
ChgActive
Listings
Chg% List
Price
YoY Chg
12/22$1,623,0002%28-7%127-19%99-14%94.4%4.9%
11/22$1,587,000-2%300%156-4%115-9%94.0%3.1%
10/22$1,614,000-5%3025%162-14%127-16%94.9%5.0%
09/22$1,703,600-5%2441%188-12%151-11%95.8%14.3%
08/22$1,802,279-1%1742%213-4%1691%98.9%22.4%
07/22$1,821,026-2%1220%223-4%16719%102.8%27.6%
06/22$1,863,6240%100%2334%14037%106.7%29.5%
05/22$1,855,9693%10-17%2236%10236%109.4%26.2%
04/22$1,807,47110%12-20%21012%759%109.5%23.3%
03/22$1,643,4658%15-12%187-6%69-5%107.4%16.1%
02/22$1,516,065-1%176%198-14%73-17%104.4%20.7%
01/22$1,535,059-1%160%231-17%88-15%103.0%30.4%
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Merry Christmas To One and All

Xmas

Christmas or Christmas Day (Old EnglishCrīstesmæsse, meaning “Christ‘s Mass“) is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed most commonly on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the  Christian liturgical year, it is prepared for by the season of Advent or the Nativity Fast and initiates the season of Christmastide, which historically in the West lasts twelve days and culminates on Twelfth Night; in some traditions, Christmastide includes an Octave. Christmas Day is a public holiday in many of the world’s nations, is celebrated culturally by a large number of non-Christian people, and is an integral part of the holiday season.

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