The Huntington Harbor housing market

The Huntington Harbor housing market, a component of the Orange County real estate market, saw signs of strength along with the rest of the region. According to a June 15, 2010 piece from OC Metro, Orange Countys median home price and sales numbers got a welcome boost in May, partly due to government tax credits, low mortgage rates and more activity in higher-priced areas, according to a new report from MDA DataQuick. The median home price rose to $450,000 in the county, up about 10 percent from the same time last year. The article by Kristen Schott continued to note that Sales rose 22 percent in Orange County, compared to the same time last year. Buyers snapped up 3,257 properties, compared to 2,667 in May 2009. Its the second consecutive month of yearly gains, according to MDA DataQuick. The number also increased from 2,669 in April.

The number of bankruptcies in the Orange County area may drag on the eventual recovery of Huntington Harbor real estate. According to a June 14, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, The Orange County bankruptcy filings for May have something for both pessimists and optimists. Bankruptcy filings for Orange County individuals and businesses rose 31.3% in May compared to a year earlier. And the 1,562 filings were the higher for May in at least 11 years, according to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The report continued to say that The good news is that in May the number of filings in the Orange County court declined 7.1%. It was the second straight month of fewer filings after the number spiked in March. Bankruptcy activity remains very high by historical standards.

A more negative perspective on the status of the Huntington Harbor housing market was provided by economist Christopher Cagan. Cagan, who was interviewed by the Orange County Register on June 11, 2010, stated that In the short to near term, I expect a double dip. This is the logical aftermath of the sugar shot from the Federal first time buyer tax credit. It borrowed buyers from the future, and we are now going into that future.

The Scottsdale housing market

The Scottsdale housing market, part of the Phoenix area real estate market, improvement in the most recent tracking periods. According to a May 22, 2010 article in the Arizona Republic, April figures for existing-home sales in metro Phoenix reveal several promising shifts for those searching for signs of a housing market recovery. The overall number of home sales in the region continued to hover near record levels last month. The piece, composed by Catherine Reagor, went on to state that Beneath the sales figures were other encouraging numbers: Foreclosures did not dominate sales of existing homes in the Valley for the first time in more than a year. The number of investors purchasing homes from lenders dropped. More buyers purchased homes with the intent of living on them. More buyers financed their purchases with long-term mortgages. April sales included the last wave of first-time buyers who rushed to buy before a federal tax credit expired.

The increased rate of purchase for Scottsdale real estate was reflected in a higher demand for housing land. According to a June 13, 2010 article from the Arizona Republic, Homebuilders are buying land again in metropolitan Phoenix. So far this year, according to the Arizona brokerage firm Land Advisors, homebuilders here have spent $90 million on land purchases for new homes. Thats the most builders have invested in the regions land in any year since the peak of the housing boom in 2006. The piece, also written by Catherine Reagor, also reported that New land purchases are a sign the cycle is stirring to life again in a retooled housing industry. The parcels of land and the pool of builders buying them are both much smaller than before the real-estate crash. But residential lot prices are climbing as a steady stream of purchases by builders the past six months restarts the regions new-home industry.

The number of foreclosures in the Scottsdale housing market as well as the rest of the Phoenix area has been declining steadily. According to a report from Arizona State University, Foreclosures as a share of the overall Phoenix-area resale-housing market activity are declining. The latest Realty Studies report from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University explains the number of foreclosure has gone down from 40 percent of the markets recorded activity in March to 33 percent in May.

Indio real estate market

The Indio real estate market, part of the larger Coachella Valley housing market, is seeing some signs of improvement despite a lag in the regions economic recovery. According to a June 15, 2010 article from the Desert Sun, Chapman University economist Esmael Adibi, who issued his quarterly Desert Sun Economic Forecast for the Coachella Valley on June 3, offered a statewide prediction for job growth that was slightly more conservative. The piece by Debra Gruszecki went on to note that Across the state, hes predicted median price will rise 7 percent in 2010 and 4 percent in 2011. If you look at just that, it would say prices are going higher, but the mix of homes being sold are changing, he said. In the low end of the Coachella Valley housing market, Adibi said existing home prices have probably bottomed.

The increase in the median price of an Indio or Orange County home for sale was also mentioned in a May 29, 2010 report from KPSP News. This article found that If youre trying to sell a home or condo in the valley there is some good news. Compared to the same time period last year home prices are up quite a bit. The piece, composed by Jackie Pedroza, went on to say that According to a report just released from the Palm Springs Regional Association of Realtors, the median home price in the Coachella Valley rose 31% in April, compared to the same time last year. The median price jumped from $150-thousand dollars to more than $190-thousand dollarsCurrently across the valley, there are around 5 thousand active listings for homes or condos. Of those 40 percent are priced at or below 300-thousand dollars.

The Indio housing market should eventually benefit from a gradual reduction in job losses. According to a June 6, 2010 article in the Desert Sun, For the first time since 2007, the Desert Suns quarterly index of leading Coachella Valley economic indicators shot up 9 points from some of the lowest marks in its history to 95.5. Hitting 100 is the tipping point for job growth.

The Soquel housing market

The Soquel housing market, a subsidiary of the larger Santa Clara County housing market, is showing some signs of strength during the first half of 2010. According to a May 31, 2010 article from the Mercury News, The local housing market continues to show improvement in sales and value of homes, though overall home sales in the nine-county Bay Area and the state as a whole, showed mixed results during the month of April, according to [the] latest real estate sales and price reports. The piece, composed by Rose Meily, went on to state that MDA DataQuick reports sales for all new and resale homes and condos in Santa Clara County rose 3.1 percent in April compared with the same period last year. A total of 1,656 homes sold in April, up from 1,606 homes sold in April 2009. The median home price for all homes jumped 20.7 percent from $405,000 in April of 2009 to $489,000 this year.

Soquel real estate may soon face higher demand as the Silicon Valley market also begins to recover. According to a June 10, 2010 article from Housing Watch, The housing market in Californias Silicon Valley is beginning to rebound. And while it certainly isnt as hot and heavy as it was in the dot-com boom with multiple offers as the sky, local real estate agents say competition is starting again among homebuyers, especially on the lower end of the market. The piece, composed by Aaron Crowe, went on to state that Nearly half of the homes sold in Santa Clara County, Calif., in May sold for more than their asking prices, according to a San Jose Mercury News story.

The overall economic situation facing the Soquel housing market also improved in the month of April. According to a May 21, 2010 article from the Mercury News, Silicon Valleys troubled job market turned a corner in April with a sharp drop in unemployment in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, driven in part by an increase in tech hiring. The Silicon Valley economy is growing again, said Stephen Levey of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy. The numbers are small, but the direction has definitely changed.

Viewing New Homes in Hawaii

As more and more non-residents look to purchase Hawaii MLS real estate, the importance of viewing a wide range of properties has become of utmost importance to potential home buyers in the local market. Because communities and neighborhoods have expanded so rapidly, its often hard for people to view all of their options and all of the possibilities. Signing up for a real estate tour is perhaps one of the easiest things to do in order to avoid making a mistake or quick decision that could potentially prove to be a costly boo-boo.

A large number of realtors from companies across the state and on most of Hawaiis main islands offer guided tours of some of the areas best real estate neighborhoods. While some realtors might charge a fee for participating in a tour, there are several realty companies that provide the service free of charge as long as one of their realtors is representing the interested party. Guided home tours making viewing new homes in Hawaii fun by providing door-to-door transportation, a guided tour of the surrounding areas, and informative presentations at every property. In fact, guided tours are often the make it or break it factor for many home buyers.

Moving to Maui

Sometimes, the worst part of moving to Hawaii is actually packing and flying to the islands. Fortunately, the state is well connected to the rest of the world, making a move to Hawaii an effortless exercise. Because of Hawaiis rather remote location, air transportation has been developed significantly faster than many other places of similar size and status. Accordingly, moving to Maui is quite fact, convenient, and affordable. While a quick connection from the Honolulu International Airport on Oahu is an attractive option due to accessibility and variety of flights, the Kahului Airport is able to hold its own, offering a number of flights to throughout the state and the United States. The eighteen-gate main terminal provides excellent facilities to meet the large number of flights that fly into and out of Kahului daily. Air Canada and WestJet provide daily service from Vancouver, Canada while US Airways, Delta Airlines, and Alaska Airlines provide non-stop service to a number of mainland destinations. United Airlines is the largest non-local airline serving Kahului, with daily services to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Kona, and Chicago. American Airlines follows at a close second with multiple flights to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Dallas/Fort Worth. Hawaiian Airlines is the largest carrier in Kahului with narrowbody interisland flights to Honolulu, Kona, and Lihue, as well as widebody 767 flights to Seattle and Portland. These direct flights that avoid a layover in Honolulu makes moving to Maui only one flight away for many potential residents.