Welcome to Rainbow City Alabama


California Real Estate

The California Real Estate market is one ofdo not occupy the properties in question is
the fastest paced and vibrant in the world.on  the  rise.
Nowhere else is property traded so fiercely
and competitively and at such high stakes asIn Southern California, the extremely low
in  this  state.level of house sales in December 2007 has
caused many in the real estate
A recent report on the number of house salesindustry-sellers, buyers, and lending
in California, which was released in Decemberinstitutions included-to watch the market
of 2007, showed that more than 25,000 condoclosely. While the number of new houses sold
units and houses-both brand new andin Riverside, Los Angeles, San Diego, San
resale-changed hands in that month. AsBernardino, Orange County and Ventura went up
impressive as that figure is, it was in fact.5% from the previous month-about 13,200 from
virtually unchanged from the house salesslightly more than 13,100 in November-this
figure in November, and is actually down morestill represented a steep 45% decline from
than 40% from November of 2006, when housethe same period the previous year, when
sales registered at 43,400. Records show thathouses sold numbered slightly more than
there has been a steady decline in house24,200.
sales over the past 27 months, and that
December's sales were the lowest for thatOne real estate industry analyst has declined
particular month ever since records wereto make any forecasts or predications about
first  kept  in  1988.which way the market will go in the next few
months, saying that the present instable
Median prices for houses also went downcondition of the market has made it
almost 3%-or to just over $400,000 inimpossible to predict which way things will
December-from about $412,000 in November.go. Many experts agree however that the real
This price represents an almost 15% declineestate market will stabilize soon and that a
from December of 2006, when the median priceclearer picture will emerge. Until then both
of houses was about $472,000. The peak inbuyers and sellers are keeping a watchful eye
median house prices was reached in the periodon  the  proceedings.
of March to May last year, when the price of
houses  averaged  around  $484,000.We mentioned earlier that foreclosure
activity is on the rise, and indeed during
This drop in median house prices can bethe last quarter of 2007, mortgage default
explained mostly by the slow sales of highnotices were at its highest level in 15
priced properties, which in itself is theyears. Much of this increase in foreclosed
direct result of instability in the creditproperties goes hand in hand with
industry. 17,500 homes purchased indepreciation of home values. Many homeowners
California in December 2007 were bought withhave suddenly found themselves in a position
conforming loans amounting to $417,000, whichwherein they owe more on the mortgage than
is a huge decline of almost 30% from Decemberwhat the property is actually worth on the
of 2006, when the number of houses boughtmarket. A large number of those who have been
with the same loan amounted to almost 25,000.forced into foreclosure may have felt the
With regard to jumbo loans, 4,600 houses inpressure of high mortgage rates, the loss of
California were purchased for more thanincome or even the need to move to another
$417,000 in this manner, which is a declinestate.
of a whopping 70% from December 2006, when
houses  purchased  number  more  than 15,000.One factor that can explain this phenomenon
is the decline in median house prices from a
Other signs show that the real estate markethigh of $484,000 in March of 2007 to just
in the state continues to move in differentslightly above $400,000 in the latter part of
directions. Property foreclosures are at anthe year. Although this decline was perhaps
all time high (we will discuss this inpartially caused by the shift in the type of
further detail later on in this article), andhouses that were sold, this would have
both adjustable-rate mortgage and multipleundoubtedly still had a significant role to
mortgage financing has declined drastically.play in the increase of the number of
At the same time, down payment values as wellhomeowners who were forced to default on
as flipping rates have remained fairlytheir mortgage loans.
constant, and buying activity by owners who



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