Are Santa Clara County Foreclosures Still a Bargain in 2013

The short answer to the question are bank owned homes still a bargain in Santa Clara County in 2013 is NO. 

This is a chart of all the single family foreclosures sold in Santa Clara County in 2013. Of the 211 single family bank owned homes the average sales price vs list price was over asking every month this year except for the average of the homes that closed in October. These figures are very similar to the traditional resale of homes in Santa Clara County in 2013.

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Santa Clara County condos/town homes that are bank owned and sold in 2013 also sold over list price. The average sale price was over list price in every month in 2013 except Aug where the average was 98% of list price. 

This is very similar to what happened with traditonal resales of condos in Santa Clara County.

So what happened to the great deals you can get with foreclosures? I am sorry but those days are gone. The inventory of homes for sale in Santa Clara County is so low and the demand so high that almost every listing gets multiple offers, whether it is a traditional resale, short sale, or Santa Clara County foreclosure. Added to that is the fact that there are very few foreclosures that make it to the market anyway. Most of the people who could not afford their mortgages lost their homes years ago. Also, since there has been so much appreciation this year the number of people who owe more on their mortgages than the home is worth is very low. If they can not afford to keep the home is is very easy to sell it and pocket some cash.

So if you are looking for a bargain in a single family home or condo it is not likely you will find it in a Santa Clara County Foreclosure.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

http://www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Cal BRE 01191194

650-619-9285

Santa Clara County Foreclosure Update 2013

If you are looking for a bank owned home in Santa Clara County don't hold your breath. The number of foreclosures in Santa Clara County have plummeted in 2013. Here are the numbers:

Bank Owned Single Family Homes:

Active listings: 13

Pending sales: 18

Closed Escrow in 2013  163

Total single family homes in Santa Clara County

Active listings: 1215

Pending Sales: 1665

Closed escrows in 2012:  4982

 The percentage of single family homes that are foreclosures are:

Active listings: 1 Percent

Pending Sales: 1 Percent

Closed Sales: 3 Percent

Bank Owned Condos/Townhomes

Active listings: 10

Pending sales: 16

Closed sales in 2013: 2026

Total Townhome Sales in 2013

Active listings: 384

Pending Sales: 673

Closed Sales 2013

Percentage of townhomes that are foreclosures

Active listings 2.6%

Pending sales: 2.4%

Closed sales in 2013: 3.3%

Total Sold Foreclosures in 2013: 231

Total Sold foreclosures in the last 6 months of 2012: 579

What do these numbers tell us? Foreclosures are down, by a lot. There are less than half the number of bank owned homes sold in the first six months of 2013 compared to the second six months of 2012. Additionally there are fewer active and pending listings by percentage compared to closed sales in 2013. This leads me to believe there will be even fewer closed sales in the second half of 2013.

There are many reasons for the decreased in foreclosures in 2013. Many of the large banks had settlements with the governent in which they agreed to work on loan modifications and principal reductions instead of foreclosures. Also short sales have been getting approved a lot more than previously rather than being foreclosed.

There is chatter in the foreclosure world that now that the banks have fulfilled their obligations they will begin foreclosing again. While this may be true in some markets, I do not believe it will happen in Santa Clara County. Prices have increased dramatically in Santa Clara County. In many cities we are back to values seen at the peak in early 2008. With these higher values owners can sell if they can not afford the payments, or take advantage of the historically low interest rates and refinance.

So if you are looking for a bargain in Santa Clara County it is probably a good idea to look for homes other than foreclosures. It is unlikely this decrease in bank owned homes in Santa Clara County is going to change in the near future.

If you have any questions about foreclosures or any other type of sale in Santa Clara County please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

maryc@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Can I Buy a Home in Sunnyvale Ca at an Auction?

Buying a Foreclosure

Question: The house next door to me has a notice of trustee sale on the door. Can I go to the auction and buy it?

Answer: That depends. If the owners of the house pay off what they owe before the trustee sale or if they declare bankruptcy there will not be a sale. However if they do not do anything then the home will go to public auction. In order to purchase at auction you would have to pay all cash, you do not get contingencies, and the title is not insured.  The first loan has to be paid off and if the house is worth less than the loan balance you would have to pay more for the home than it is worth.  If the home is being foreclosed by someone who has a junior lien, that is a second loan, or a lien against the home then the first lien holder needs to be paid off before any of the junior lien holders can have the property.  

It is generally a very risky proposition to purchase a home at public auction since there is no way to guarantee that you will have clear title. Even if you pay off the first lien holder there may be other liens against the property that you would become responsible for. The best thing to do is to wait until the bank repossesses a home, and then lists it with a realtor or sells it an auction with an auction company that allows a buyer to use a lender. There are not many auctions like this in Santa Clara County, but they do happen occasionally. It is more common for a foreclosed home to be listed on the MLS after the bank takes it back.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

650-619-9285

D.R.E. 01191194

Marcy Moyer Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto, Ca. Specialist in Trust and Probate Sales