Data show lot size shrinking along with Sacramento housing market

For a half-century, Sacramento real estate has resembled big-bang theory – waves of homebuyers headed to ever more distant suburbs for bigger houses on larger lots.

Now comes the contraction.

New data show the share of homes built on large lots of 5,500 square feet or more dropped steadily regionwide from 80 percent in the early 2000s to 32 percent in 2008.

Builders are responding to a downsized economy and public interest in “green” living with less expensive houses packed closer together, town houses and urban lofts, much of it nestled into existing city cores.

The portrait of a region cinching its belt a notch comes from data to be published Friday by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments at a growth symposium called “Blueprint: Then, Now, Next.”

The purpose of the SACOG event is to assess the effect of the blueprint, a groundbreaking regional plan adopted in 2004 by local governments to keep Sacramento’s urban footprint reasonably compact as the population grows, and to encourage walking and use of public transit.

The smaller-lot trend emerged during extraordinary times, coinciding with a run-up in real estate prices through the mid-2000s, and the subsequent market tailspin that caused home construction to drop to its lowest levels in decades.

That has left planners uncertain whether the data represent a reaction to the moment, or a longer-term market shift.

“We believe it will continue,” said SACOG Executive Director Mike McKeever, but “we need a few more years.”

Building industry official Dennis Rogers says the move toward more types of housing – rather than simply spacious suburban stand-alone models – is what the region needs to attract and retain residents in the future. Young people, empty nesters and seniors, in particular, may not want or need big houses.

“This is a significant maturing of our housing market,” said Rogers, who works for the North State Building Industry Association.

While the movement includes urban lofts in central Sacramento, and plans for 12,000 housing units in the old downtown railyard, planners say a Rancho Cordova development – Capital Village – actually typifies the trend.

The Beazer Homes project off Zinfandel Drive sits squarely in the suburbs. Yet it includes a walkable “Main Street” of offices and eateries, a central village green and narrow streets of densely packed houses and three-story town homes, some with front lawns no bigger than a twin-sized bed. Garages are hidden in back alleys.

Planners call it “urban light.”

With Capital Village, Rancho Cordova seeks to address the lack of housing near its office and industrial parks – an imbalance that clogs Highway 50 with cars at commute time.

Now, the jobs are “literally across the street,” said Rancho Cordova Councilman David Sander.

For new residents, though, low prices may be a greater draw than the promise of a short commute and a new, more urban style of living.

Signs boast town houses for under $200,000. That’s what attracted Kendris Cabral, 33, and his wife, Crystal, with their 8-month-old daughter to a two-story, two-bedroom, 1,200-square-foot house.

Cabral and his family love to walk to the frozen yogurt shop at the other end of the village, but he said neither he nor any of his neighbors work in the nearby office parks. He drives 15 minutes to work in south Sacramento, taking back roads to avoid the freeway.

Empty nester Terre Southwick kicked a ball Tuesday afternoon with her grandson on the village green. Southwick said she loves to walk to stores, but doesn’t consider herself an urbanist of any kind.

“I’m a country kid,” she said. “This just seems comfortable, safe. Like we’re our own little community.”

The turn to smaller-lot housing, condos and lofts is mainly market-driven, said local housing analyst John Schleimer, who has pronounced dead the 6,000-square foot residential lot.

“In a market of accelerating land and lot costs, you have to keep new homes affordable,” said Schleimer, president of Market Perspectives in Roseville.

But Schleimer and others say there are deeper causes that suggest the small-lot movement is not just a momentary response to a bad economy and high real estate prices.

The contraction’s roots go back a decade, before the economic downturn, and mirror a national trend in metropolitan areas, according to a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study.

Report author John Thomas cited work the Sacramento Area Council of Governments and other local officials did in the early 2000s as part of the blueprint effort.

Following blueprint guidelines, cities and counties have changed zoning codes to make it easier to build denser housing near offices and retail in already-developed areas.

The goal is to retain open space, reduce commute distances and congestion, improve air quality and provide housing stock variety, while the region’s population grows by more than 1 million in the next half-century.

Southwick in Capital Village likes one aspect of the small-lot trend that leaves more time for grandkids: “I can mow my lawn in two minutes.”

Sacramento-area home sales dismal in February

Sacramento-area home sales hovered around two-year lows during February, branding the start of 2010 as real estate’s long slow winter.

But prospects for spring are stronger with thousands of new sales contracts blossoming across the region, say real estate agents and mortgage brokers. Most will close escrow in March and April.

“The people who have money out there are buying right now,” said Lori Mode, a Keller Williams agent in Elk Grove. They include first-time buyers and investors from as far away as Australia, she said Thursday. A $589,000 bank repo in Wilton fetched “10 offers the first week, and it went for almost $100,000 over the asking price,” she said.

That’s a silver lining in an otherwise lackluster February sales report. Amid a short month, wet weather and unemployment that has reached 13.1 percent regionally, buyers and sellers closed just 2,464 escrows in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties, La Jolla researcher MDA DataQuick reported.

That was up from January’s 2,428 sales, but well under 2,809 in February 2009. Buyers closed 2,162 escrows in February 2008 and 2,534 in February 2007.

“January and February were dismal,” acknowledged Jon Dobbel, Elk Grove branch manager of Summit Funding. “It’s the rain, the unemployment, the housing depression and the inability of people who own a house to buy a house because it’s upside down. The move-up market is virtually dead.”

The new home market is equally rough. Just 6.6 percent of February’s regional sales were new homes, 163 in all, DataQuick reported. In 2005 new homes accounted for 25 percent of sales.

But Dobbel, too, is cheered by a March “that has just taken off. We’re going to be up about 300 percent in closings over February.”

February’s median sales price for new and existing homes in Sacramento County rose slightly from January, reaching $169,000, DataQuick reported. That’s a 5.6 percent gain from Feb. 2009 when repos were 70 percent of sales and prices bottomed out at $160,000. They went as high as $180,000 during the second half of 2009. Median is that point where half cost more and half less.

Sales prices were also 5 percent higher than last year in Sutter County and 2.7 percent higher in Yolo County. Other area counties, especially the affluent suburban zones, saw prices dip from last year as owners slashed them to sell.

At this point, Sacramento’s housing recovery is lagging coastal California. The Bay Area saw sales prices jump 20 percent from last year. Prices rose 10 percent in the Los Angeles, Inland Empire and San Diego region.

DataQuick analyst Andrew LePage said the high-end markets there have awakened from being “asleep a year ago.” Foreclosures are also a smaller part of their sales mixes.

Sacramento County’s February repo market share was 54.8 percent, reflecting a continuing widespread mortgage crisis where 12.3 percent of area home loans are seriously delinquent, in foreclosure or tied to a bank repo listed for sale. The foreclosed inventory attracted large numbers of absentee buyers, usually investors, who accounted for 27.4 percent of sales. DataQuick said 34 percent of buyers paid cash in a county market where nearly one in four sales were priced below $100,000.

“As an investor you pretty much have to be cash,” said Warren Adams, a broker associate with Security Pacific Real Estate in Fair Oaks. Banks, he said, have stopped lending to most investors after they buy four houses. First-time buyers are getting most of the rest.

“I would say a majority of my accepted offers are owner-occupied,” he said. Adams attributed March’s rise in activity to the season, low interest rates and possibly an April 30 deadline for an $8,000 first-time buyer federal tax credit. Buyers must be in sales contracts by then and close escrow by June 30 to qualify.

Mortgage rates have stayed below 5 percent, before paying points, for seven of 2010’s first 11 weeks, according to federal mortgage giant Freddie Mac. Rates this week for 30-year fixed loans were 4.96 percent.

Sacramento home prices lag behind state gains

The median price of a single-family home in the greater Sacramento region rose 3 percent in January compared with the same month a year ago, far below a 15 percent statewide gain reported Tuesday by the California Association of Realtors.

The association said the Sacramento region’s median home price last month was $174,830, up from $169,670 in January last year but down from $189,140, or 7.6 percent, in December.

Statewide, the median single-family home price in January was $287,440, up from $249,960 in the year-ago period, but down 6.3 percent from $306,820 in December.

The association also said January sales in the Sacramento region were down 24.9 percent compared with January 2009 and off by 29.5 percent compared with December. The respective statewide sales declines were 10.6 percent and 3 percent.

Sacramento-area home sales were terrible in January

The new year in home sales opened with a thud.

January sales fell to their lowest point in almost two years across the capital region, San Diego researcher MDA DataQuick reported Thursday. The firm counted just 2,428 closed January escrows on new and existing houses in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties.

The tally was well below 2,806 sales in January 2009 – and the lowest since March 2008.

“I think people are just scared,” said Larry Henderson, a real estate agent with Prudential Norcal Realty in Carmichael. “I think they’re still afraid houses are going to go down.” He said his bigger fear, however, is that interest rates will climb to 6 percent this year and freeze out his clients who are first-time buyers.

January’s weak sales numbers imitated a pattern seen statewide, where the month is always one of the year’s slowest for sales. DataQuick analysts said January is a poor month to chart emerging trends, and cautioned against seeing weak numbers as “substantial lasting changes in the market.”

Despite fewer sales, year-over-year prices for new and existing homes combined continued to hold steady. They ranged from flat in Sacramento County to 4 percent and 5 percent annual declines elsewhere.

But median prices for existing homes in Sacramento County, the largest sector of the real estate market, fell from $178,000 in December to $166,000 as lower-end homes gained more market share.

“January closings really skewed toward foreclosure resales,” said DataQuick analyst Andrew LePage. He said bank repos were 52.7 percent of the county’s sales, the highest since September.

Many of these repos were scooped up by investors who shopped aggressively during the holidays and accounted for 28 percent of January sales in Sacramento County. That is the highest monthly investor share since 2000. DataQuick said 31.8 percent of buyers in Sacramento paid cash, continuing a yearlong pattern that has frozen out scores of first-time buyers.

Henderson called the climate “brutal” for buyers trying to purchase their first home.

Home sales registered the sharpest drops from January 2009 in Sacramento, Yolo, Sutter and Yuba counties. A year ago in those counties, cheap bank repos accounted for as many as seven in 10 sales. That buying frenzy has since slowed.

Sales rose from January 2009 in the more affluent suburban, rural and resort counties: Placer, El Dorado, Nevada and Amador. They had few bank repo sales early last year, making their low 2009 tallies easy to beat, LePage said.

Regionally, January marked a seventh straight month of sales numbers that failed to beat those of the same time a year earlier. That pattern follows 14 months of year-over-year sales gains that ran from April 2008 to June 2009. Many of those gains overlapped with a buying frenzy ignited by banks dumping thousands of discounted repo properties onto the market.

LePage said January’s higher percentage of foreclosure resales “is more cleanup of a mess we already know about.” He said there are still no indicators of another massive wave of repo listings.

“If there’s going to be a new wave of foreclosures we’re going to see those first in notices of default (the first step of the foreclosure process), and we haven’t seen that. They’re elevated but it hasn’t taken off.”

Investors plunking down cash for homes

Investors paying cash for houses accounted for one in four home sales during the past year in Sacramento County and West Sacramento, becoming dominating players in a distressed market and squeezing out scores of first-time buyers, 2009 statistics now show.

Many of these cash buyers are from the Bay Area. They’ve re-established that region’s traditional link to Sacramento real estate and are scoring houses at up to 10 percent off listing prices, local market participants say.

Buying with cash, says local broker associate Jim Swanson, is another Sacramento “gold rush.”

Carey Covey, a Cook Realty agent in Sacramento, said he recently sold a bank repo to a Sunnyvale investor by phone.

“I never met him. He never saw the property,” Covey said.

He paid $55,000 – in cash.

Cash buys suggest there’s still plenty of money out there despite the bad economy. And it’s flowing into a market where repo prices in 2009 often remained well below $100,000 or even $70,000.

“There are some people who have money in a 401(k) and want to find better use for it,” said Swanson of Prudential California Realty. “I have clients taking cash out of properties they already own and using that money to buy real estate. I have one cash buyer who planned to use loans, but he had plenty of savings.”

Cash buyers can obtain discounts not available to others, and their purchases seldom fall out of escrow. They have pushed aside first-time buyers who can’t compete.

“I have lists and lists and lists of houses I have looked at and put offers on. Everything has been investors, investors, investors,” said Kimii Carter, a city employee in West Sacramento. Carter said she made offers on 30 houses south of downtown Sacramento, including a $145,000 bid on a $114,000 listing she wanted for herself and two daughters.

“They said, ‘We already have a cash offer,’ ” Carter said.

“All the buyers will agree. This is what I’m hearing every day,” said Barbara Rohwer Harsch, president of the Sacramento Association of Realtors.

For months, first-time buyers have complained of losing bidding wars to investors often paying with cash. But now a year of data prove the pattern. Cash buyers were 26.7 percent of January sales in Sacramento County and West Sacramento, according to SAR.

In every month of 2009, cash buyers ranged from 23.7 percent to 27.7 percent of closed escrows, SAR reported. Researchers at La Jolla-based MDA DataQuick, which counts more sales than SAR, says the Sacramento County cash-buy percentage is even higher.

“It’s been in the 27 percent to 32 percent range for the past year,” company analyst Andrew LePage said.

Swanson, researching data from Sacramento’s MetroList Services, said cash buyers accounted for 60 percent of January sales under $100,000 in Sacramento County.

“One of my clients bought five or six last year. Another bought two,” he said. Many are in areas devastated by risky adjustable-rate loans: North and south Sacramento, Del Paso Heights, North Highlands and Rancho Cordova.

Swanson, too, made a cash buy in 2008, paying $38,000 for a two-bedroom, one-bath home in Del Paso Heights. He spent $14,000 on repairs and then rented it out.

Sacramento general contractor Bruce Morse said he bought four houses and a duplex with cash the past two years. Prices ranged from $50,000 to $120,000. Morse repairs, rents and holds, saying, “This is my retirement plan.

“I had cash from a home equity loan and my aunt lent me some money. My dad lent me a little money,” he said.

Morse said paying cash makes it “a little easier dealing with banks. “They just know it’s cash and they don’t have to worry about too much else.”

Analysts have long said banks prefer cash as a quick and easy way to shore up their bottom lines, eroded by defaults across the United States, and particularly in California. Twelve percent of mortgages in Sacramento, Placer, Yolo and El Dorado counties are 90 days behind on payments, somewhere in the foreclosure process or related to a bank repo with a for-sale sign out front, says Orange County analyst First American Core- Logic.

But those not suffering such privations still have plenty of cash, especially in the Bay Area, said Matthew Anderson, partner at Oakland-based Foresight Analytics, a real estate consulting firm.

“In California, 12 percent unemployment means there’s still 88 percent of the work force that have jobs and incomes, and a lot of people still have quite decent incomes,” he said.

A DataQuick survey of second-home purchases by Bay Area investors last July, August and September ranked Sacramento as their top target. Elk Grove ranked 10th behind Las Vegas, Stockton and other Central Valley markets.

Mike Lyon, head of Sacramento’s Lyon Real Estate, estimates that two-thirds of the Sacramento region’s cash buyers are Bay Area investors.

Anderson said investors see this as an “attractive time to be buying, especially if you’re going to turn around and leverage (borrow against) the investment. It’s a cheap time to be borrowing money.”

But that kind of finance is little comfort to buyers like Carter. She’s in escrow on her first house, but it’s smaller than she hoped and not exactly what she wanted.

“I felt I had to take it. It’s my only option,” she said, recounting her many losing bids since November. “It’s really discouraging for somebody trying to buy their first house. It shouldn’t be like this, but it is.”

Everything That You Will Want to Know About the Sacramento Community!!

Have you just bought your dream home from the Sacramento new homes for sale? Are you willing to relocate to Sacramento, but are unaware of the community where you will be moving into? Well, you should have had found out about the community before you purchased the home! Since you have not done that, do not worry. We will help you know your community better! After reading through this article, you will be rest assured that you have bought a home in the country’s best community! You will be more than willing to relocate. So what is it that you have to know about Sacramento before you relocate?
To begin with, Sacramento was founded in 1848. Peacefully located along the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the city’s destiny changed by the discovery of gold. From then on the city has been an active community for all activities. Adorned with a rich history and a promising future, this place is the prime target of many first time real estate investors who are buying the Sacramento new homes for sale. As you have just made your purchase, you will know that the median home in Sac Town costs only $360,000.
Folsom, the suburb that was established during the gold rush days is now a major middle class settlement. This suburb is a priority among middle class families as it offers excellent schooling. It also homes many antique shops, museums, and cafes that relate to the historic days. The Folsom new homes for sale range from $300,000 to $800,000. This area is a perfect mix of the modern suburb and the old Wild West.
The real estate at Sac Town includes single homes, apartments, mansions and townhomes. The town is also home to many Victorian mansions and bungalows. The community amenities include specialty shops, cafes, bookstores, medical facilities, etc. The downtown is always bustling with hassle free activity. The cost of living in Sacramento is much lower when compared to other cities of California.
This city is a perfect place of residence for all age groups. The number of homes sold here in 2009, is a proof of this statement. With excellent education at all levels and job opportunities in various sectors like services, finance, construction, retail and wholesale trade, you are sure to find a very peaceful life in your new home at Sacramento.

For additional resources and information please visit the following sites.

Resource Links:

http://www.gmacrealestate.com

Bill Fields All Star Coaching Program: http://www.AllStarCoaching.net
GreatWest GMAC Search all MLS Listings: http://www.LocalHomeLink.com
GreatWest GMAC Consumer Buyer/Seller Blog: http://www.GreatWestBlog.com
T. Sami Siddiqui (Broker/ Owner) Buzz About Sacramento Blog: http://www.samisiddiquiblog.com
Brodie Stephens (Executive Vice President) One Stop Blog: http://www.brodiestephensblog.com
GreatWest Podcasts- Weekly Updates on new REO, Short Sale, Bank Owned Foreclosure Listings: http://www.HouseTalkOnline.com
GreatWest Videos: http://www.youtube.com/brodiestephens
Facebook Brodie Stephens Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/brodiestephens
Facebook GreatWest Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/searchmlshomesforsale
MySpace Brodie Stephens Blog: http://www.myspace.com/brodiestephens
MySpace GreatWest Blog: http://www.myspace.com/greatwest
Picasa Web Album: http://picasaweb.google.com/brodiestephens
GreatWest Real Estate Careers- GMAC is looking for Professional Realtors to Join Us: http://www.CareersWithUs.com
Global Employee Relocation: http://www.employeerelocation.blogspot.com
Apply for a Loan: http://www.choice1funding.com
ActiveRain Blog Brodie http://activerain.com/blogs/brodiestephens
ActiveRain Blog Company http://activerain.com/blogs/greatwestgmac
Sacbee http://www.sacbee.com
Company WordPress Site http://www.thehomeholders.com
Real Living http://www.realliving.com

Sacramento – Real Estate Tips

Investment in real estate is said to be the safest form of investment any individual can make. Having found your dream home with the help of a real estate agent, you are all set to buy it. But wait! Are you warned about the risks involved in investing in real estate investment? Here are a few points that you need to before making your bid on the property.
Getting a ‘real’ real estate agent:
With many agents in the market, finding an agent who has the best deals to offer at the best property is difficult. With real estate going online, the reach of agents to clients has grown over the internet. With many scams on the internet choosing a genuine real estate agent is an intelligent task.
Never be in a hurry to make decisions:
Some kinds of deals require more time than others. Do not mix real estate negotiations with your regular work. Take time to make sure you are not being cheated. Make sure you have enough time to visit various investment programs before deciding on a particular property.
Enough finance:
A deal well settled is a good deal. A buyer or a seller is not happy as long as he is satisfied that he has sold above the market price and bought below the market price. Before making a deal, investigate on different ways to fund your investments. Government grants and mortgage loans are to be closely considered.
Stop negative flow of cash:
Just like other investments, you can incur losses in real estate. A deal that leaves you with less money than what you had when you started is said to have created a negative flow. An excess of negative flow deals will leave you in an insolvent state. This requires you to understand the vitality of identifying transactions that will work out in favor of you.
Know when to call it quits:
If you feel you are stuck with the same property for quite a long time, then it is time you do something about it. If you feel it would be a good idea to hang out on this property, then it might be the right thing to consider. Look at the market position before calling for prospective buyers.
Real estate mostly portrays our status and pride. Come to think of it! Pride can kill a deal. The investment must be measured on the lines of your potential, quality of purchase and profit from the investment. Be creative! Investment in real estate is not investing more than the biggest investor, it is about investing intelligently. The trick in real estate is of both parties being positive to strike a deal without hurdles.
In the current trend of online real estate, you have to be more selective about your agent. An outstanding pioneer in the field of real estate is GreatWest GMAC Real Estate. To make a good investment with GMAC visit them on the link here: www.greatwestgmac.com.
For additional resources and information please visit the following sites.

Resource Links:

http://www.gmacrealestate.com

Bill Fields All Star Coaching Program: http://www.AllStarCoaching.net
GreatWest GMAC Search all MLS Listings: http://www.LocalHomeLink.com
GreatWest GMAC Consumer Buyer/Seller Blog: http://www.GreatWestBlog.com
T. Sami Siddiqui (Broker/ Owner) Buzz About Sacramento Blog: http://www.samisiddiquiblog.com
Brodie Stephens (Executive Vice President) One Stop Blog: http://www.brodiestephensblog.com
GreatWest Podcasts- Weekly Updates on new REO, Short Sale, Bank Owned Foreclosure Listings: http://www.HouseTalkOnline.com
GreatWest Videos: http://www.youtube.com/brodiestephens
Facebook Brodie Stephens Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/brodiestephens
Facebook GreatWest Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/searchmlshomesforsale
MySpace Brodie Stephens Blog: http://www.myspace.com/brodiestephens
MySpace GreatWest Blog: http://www.myspace.com/greatwest
Picasa Web Album: http://picasaweb.google.com/brodiestephens
GreatWest Real Estate Careers- GMAC is looking for Professional Realtors to Join Us: http://www.CareersWithUs.com
Global Employee Relocation: http://www.employeerelocation.blogspot.com
Apply for a Loan: http://www.choice1funding.com
ActiveRain Blog Brodie http://activerain.com/blogs/brodiestephens
ActiveRain Blog Company http://activerain.com/blogs/greatwestgmac
Sacbee http://www.sacbee.com
Company WordPress Site http://www.thehomeholders.com
Real Living http://www.realliving.com

The New Sacramento Trend- Green Homes

Green Sacramento is the current trend with all builders and real estate agents in town. Sacramento survived all the trials and tribulations through 2009 and opportunities and partnerships for Green Sacramento are getting better.
The Green builders of Sacramento feature homes that annually save thousands of kilowatts of energy, thousands of gallons of water and acres of trees! The home buyers benefit from lower energy costs and while their homes make less harmful impact on the environment.
Then what are some features of an ideal green home that make it so attractive and increase its demand?
The materials used to build an environmental friendly green home are often recycled from other buildings. These materials last longer than traditional materials and reduce the electric and heating bills through the life of the residents. The quantity of surplus building material discarded in landfills is considerably lower than the quantity generated by conventional methods.
Green homes integrate efficient plumbing and bathing fixtures, drought tolerant landscapes and water conserving irrigation systems that uses less water than traditional homes. Homes also have floor tiles and carpets recycled from bottles and tires. Some homes use sustainable and renewable products like bamboo, soybean and hemp. Paints used are made of organic compounds that are less volatile and are toxin free. Formaldehyde insulation ensures that less hazardous chemical substances are released to the environment.
The green home designs contain wider doorways, flat entries, no stairs and easily reachable bathrooms, showers and sinks that assure inhabitants with varying ability and all ages to live and mature in these homes.
A green home uses 15% less energy than standard homes. High performance windows keep air warmer in winters and cooler in summers and reduce fabric fade by 95%. Improved installation of insulation can comfortably reduce costs of heating and cooling. Heating, ventilating and air conditioning systems are designed to mean more comfort, less maintenance and quieter homes.
Water conservation is the most cost effective and environmentally sound way to reduce the increasing demand for water. Green homes use 20,000 gallons less water per year than their counterparts. Weather based irrigation controllers track rainfall, temperature, wind feed and other factors to match the water needs of your landscape according to the current weather conditions. Re-circulating hot water systems provide hot water in matter of seconds by saving those buckets of water lost before receiving hot water.
Engineered wood products are recycled or reconstituted for exterior window or door headers, roof sheathing, shear wall and sub floors.
The quality of indoor air is improved in green homes by properly sized and tested air conditioners and furnaces that provide better air quality and save on electricity and heating bills.
Green homes reduce construction wastes by 50% including wood, drywall, concrete, metal and cardboard. Reusing clean wood and recycling products will help in reducing construction waste.
Air flow tests, blower door tests, duct tests and refrigerant tests ensure a perfectly healthy living in green homes.
The opportunity to update your home into a green home is the current most attractive option to home builders, local governments and homeowners alike.
For additional resources and information please visit the following sites.

Resource Links:

http://www.gmacrealestate.com

Bill Fields All Star Coaching Program: http://www.AllStarCoaching.net
GreatWest GMAC Search all MLS Listings: http://www.LocalHomeLink.com
GreatWest GMAC Consumer Buyer/Seller Blog: http://www.GreatWestBlog.com
T. Sami Siddiqui (Broker/ Owner) Buzz About Sacramento Blog: http://www.samisiddiquiblog.com
Brodie Stephens (Executive Vice President) One Stop Blog: http://www.brodiestephensblog.com
GreatWest Podcasts- Weekly Updates on new REO, Short Sale, Bank Owned Foreclosure Listings: http://www.HouseTalkOnline.com
GreatWest Videos: http://www.youtube.com/brodiestephens
Facebook Brodie Stephens Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/brodiestephens
Facebook GreatWest Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/searchmlshomesforsale
MySpace Brodie Stephens Blog: http://www.myspace.com/brodiestephens
MySpace GreatWest Blog: http://www.myspace.com/greatwest
Picasa Web Album: http://picasaweb.google.com/brodiestephens
GreatWest Real Estate Careers- GMAC is looking for Professional Realtors to Join Us: http://www.CareersWithUs.com
Global Employee Relocation: http://www.employeerelocation.blogspot.com
Apply for a Loan: http://www.choice1funding.com
ActiveRain Blog Brodie http://activerain.com/blogs/brodiestephens
ActiveRain Blog Company http://activerain.com/blogs/greatwestgmac
Sacbee http://www.sacbee.com
Company WordPress Site http://www.thehomeholders.com
Real Living http://www.realliving.com

Home Front: Quarterly home sales worst yet for Sacramento area

Sacramento-area home builders just keep singing the blues.

July, August and September brought their worst quarter yet in this long housing crash: just 616 sales in El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties, the Folsom-based Gregory Group reports today.

Actually, nearly all the region’s sales were in Placer and Sacramento counties alone. The suburban cities of Placer County accounted for 44 percent of third-quarter sales of new homes in the region. Sacramento County’s outer suburban rings comprised 43 percent.

The tough numbers reflect California’s expired $10,000 tax credit for buyers of new, unoccupied homes – and the imminent end of an $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time homebuyers, said Gregory Group President Greg Paquin. “All the evidence was that people were coming in asking how to use the tax incentive,” he said. “That was a big selling point.”

Wednesday, however, the state Senate voted to extend the state’s $10,000 tax credit to another 4,300 buyers. The Assembly is expected to vote on it next week.

The newest sales numbers bring the year’s new-home tally to just 2,286 through Sept. 30. At that pace, sales may fall below 3,000 this year in the six-county capital region, a level not seen since the 1960s. Statistics this year from researcher MDA DataQuick show that closed escrows for new houses are about 9 percent of all home sales. In 2005, home builders claimed 25 percent.

Top five cities for sales in July, August and September:

• Roseville, 167 sales.

• Elk Grove west of Highway 99, 88 sales.

• Rancho Cordova, 79 sales.

• Lincoln, 57 sales.

• Rocklin, 52 sales.

No more up-front fees

Here’s mortgage news worth repeating: As of last Sunday, it’s illegal in California for loan modification companies or attorneys to charge up-front fees to help you get your loan modified.

Last Sunday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed SB94, by Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, to ban up-front fees. No exceptions. The game now requires a loan modification firm or attorney to clearly spell out what steps will be taken on your behalf with lenders. A struggling borrower does not pay until the firm or attorney has performed all those steps. If, however, the lender declines to modify a loan after those steps have been taken, you must still pay.

Before you sign anything, the loan modification firm must tell you, in your own language, that you can get these same services free from government-approved nonprofit loan counseling firms. More information: www.dre.ca.gov.

Free foreclosure workshops

The Sacramento Mutual Housing Association will hold a pair of free foreclosure prevention workshops next week for people struggling with mortgages.

The workshops will explain the federal Making Home Affordable loan modification program and other options to keep your house. It will also explain steps of the foreclosure process and how to avoid scams. During sessions, people can schedule a free individual session with a foreclosure prevention specialist.

First session: Monday at 6 p.m. at Mutual Housing at Lemon Hill, South Sacramento. Address: 6000 Lemon Hill Ave.

Second session: Thursday, Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. at the Sacramento Association of Realtors. Address: 2003 Howe Ave., Sacramento.

Preregistration is required. Call Tara at Sacramento Mutual Housing Association, (916) 453-8400, extension 43, or e-mail: tara@mutualhousing.com.