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The *Fresno Bee reported today that Home Sales in Fresno are UP.

The increase in sales is a function of prices dropping to levels that either make the home prices attractive to investors or providing the opportunity for first time buyers and others to enter the market.

**

I am personally working with 2 first time home buyers which would not be in the market if it were not for the deep decline in prices making properties affordable and purchasing an alternative to renting. One of my clients, if the deal goes through, will have a house payment (including taxes and insurance) that is comparable to what he would be paying in rent for the same home. The other clients, if their deal goes through, will actually be paying LESS to own home then they are currently paying for rent: SUBSTANTIALLY LESS.

If you would like to BUY a home in Fresno California, CALL ME: Lazarus @ 559.301.1647 and let me help you TODAY!

*I would have provide a direct link to the FB article only I could not find the article on their online site.

** I created this chart using the statistics from the Fresno Bee which attributed Data Quick as their source for the information

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The aforementioned slashing of prices by the lenders, which has only just begun, is bringing out the “investors”; bottom feeders who seek to profit from plunging prices. Personally, I would be happy to have a balanced market where buyers and sellers play an even hand. This sign is posted at the corner of Bullard and Fruit, in my neighborhood. The market weakness is arousing the passions of the “get rich quick” crowd. NOT GOOD imo.

If you would like to make an offer on an Foreclosed property in the Fresno / Clovis area contact me. Lazarus @ 559-301-1647

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Not long ago I gave the bleak statistics on closing of SHORT SALES on our Fresno MLS.  Yesterday I spoke with an agent at another brokerage and he told me that he submitted an offer on a Short Sale in February and was recently told by the lender that they still haven’t assigned an asset manager to review the file.  He just made another offer on a Short Sale property and spoke with that lender and was told it would likely be about 3 months before the file would be reviewed and more months after that to finalize paperwork if it was accepted.

The majority of offers on Short  Sales are simply a waste of time.   If you’re an investor looking for a bargain don’t even waste your time on a short sale; spend it looking at REOs or properties in which the owners have a significant equity position.

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WHO NEEDS A MOVIE?

Well, I’m not saying you NEED a movie but if you list your home with Lazarus Realty and would like a movie I can forward the pictures I take of your home to Fred and Sharon and they will put together a movie for you. There is of course an additional cost, which happens to be whatever Fred and Sharon charge, but it could be well worth the cost!

Ok - for those who dont know me - this is tongue-in-cheek. Buy hey, I WILL do it if you want. I’ll bury a statue of St. Joseph if you think it will help!

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Ok… I’m asking myself, what’s the deal?  Is the devil is turning my idle digits into his tools because the market is so slow ? I’m looking over the New Listings on the MLS today and I find myself being hyper-critical of what I see.

For example:

MLS# 309350  –  A 3 bedroom 2/5 bath home 1764 sq. ft. listed today for $349,000.

This is an nice area and I happen to live in this zip code so I know that the turnover of homes in 93711 is relatively low. For comparison, I look at the last 4 homes that have sold with 1/4 mile of this home in the last 6 months and the average list price is $177 per sq. ft. This new listing though is priced at nearly $198 per sq. ft and I can tell you folks, from looking at the pictures, there isn’t anything special about it. I looked at a home of similar size (MLS #295759) that sold for $322,00 and it was REALLY nice,  had dual pane windows and swimming pool. In fact, it was home I previewed one Sunday and mentioned on previous blog.

The listing agent states: “Seller said appraisal appraised for $450,000 a couple of years ago & sq ft approx 2,000 sq ft.”

I say:

WHO CARES WHAT THE HOME APPRAISED FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO?  What is the home worth today? What will it appraise for today? I don’t think there is a chance in hell that this home would appraise for the ask price today.

As for the discrepancy in sq. ft. between the tax records and the what the seller says : where did those extra sq. ft. come from?

And you don’t say “appraisal appraised” together in the same sentence. No wonder we entertained with game shows like ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A FIFTH GRADER?

Don’t get me wrong folks, I want all the homes in my zip code (esp the ones close to mine) to sell for top dollar. I just don’t see it happening here and wonder what the listing agent is thinking. Oh, and apparently, even if you do put an offer in at the list price, its a SHORT SALE subject to bank approval.

Unfortunately, I’m just warming up  This one really takes the cake: MLS#309302

This is a 4 bedroom 3.5 bath -4516 sq. ft.- home at 4478 N College Ave listed for - are you sitting down? - $1,350,000.    YIKES!!!!

What is that agent thinking? I did a CMA and went out an entire mile in every direction from that home and the highest price home I came up with that SOLD was an absolutely beautiful home on 4903 N. Van Ness that went for $725,000.

If I was the listing agent pricing a home like that I would be afraid that someone might go after me for FRAUD! Based upon the numbers if that house fetched the same price per square foot as the one on Van Ness the home would be priced somewhere around $840,00 BUT — and this is a big BUT — the home on Van Ness appears to be much, MUCH nicer than this home in every way. HOW ARE THEY COMING UP WITH THESE NUMBERS??? Is the managing broker actually reviewing the agents listings (like they are supposed to) and APPROVING them?

Alright, enuf said. This is NOT the way to make friends in this business!

Need help buying of selling a home in Fresno? Call me: Lazarus @ 559-301-1647

(Somebody please call me and put me to work so I wont have idle time on my hands for useless blogs like this.)

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THE GOOD NEWS:

According to the information provided by The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO)

in their LAST REPORT

Property values in Fresno CA increased 97.52% in the last 5 years. Fresno is actually way up there in the ranks for home appreciation [ mostly because prior to the run up prices were so depressed].

THE BAD NEWS:

According to the same report Fresno Housing Prices gave up 2.62% in the last quarter and 5.74% for the year. Those numbers, however, conflict with the those reported in the Fresno Bee, Sunday DEC 2, 2007 (Real Estate Section - page D2) where numbers from DataQuick Information Systems are used stating values have plummeted 13.7% from Oct 2006 to Oct 2007.

The DataQuick numbers in the Fresno Bee show the following:

Median Price: Oct 2006 $289,750

Median Price: Oct 2007 $250,000

From what I know of the market I would say the more provincial report from DataQuick looks like a far more accurate figure than that reported by the OFHEO.

© Randy “Lazarus” McAtee
Owner / Broker Lazarus Realty
559-301-1647
lazarusrealty@gmail.com

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…by taking great pictures?

The single most powerful tool a Realtor has for attracting buyers to your home is the camera. High Quality Photography should be part and parcel of every listed property - BUT its not! Please take the time to read this. What is worse is many properties are listed on the MLS and have no pictures whatsoever. If your Realtor isn’t so much as taking a picture to sell your home, or a least a good one, what else is he/she not doing?

In order to take stunning indoor shots that will wow potential buyers, a Realtor needs these 3 items (or a professional photographer):

1. A good camera
2. A wide angle lens
3. LIGHT - LIGHT - LIGHT

Number 1 takes little explanation. You’re property doesn’t get quality exposure with a picture taken off a fancy cell phone.

A wide angle lens will capture more of the space. The more space you capture the bigger it looks. With a good wide angle lens you can make a tiny cabin look BIG.

LIGHT - LIGHT - LIGHT and more LIGHT - if you have #1 and #2 and you dont have good light, chances are the pictuer won’t be that great. GOOD LIGHT IS A MUST.

Below are two indoor shots that were taken at night using the indoor lights and an SB-800 Flash.

Remember, 88% of all buyers are searching for homes via the internet. Marketing your home with the best possible pictures is the single most important thing your Realtor can do to attract buyers. Nothing attracts buyers more than great pictures, except perhaps a discounted price.

Want to SELL your home? Call me.

© Randy “Lazarus” McAtee
Owner / Broker Lazarus Realty
559-301-1647
Email Me

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Stories Of A Landlord in Fresno CA.
Part I –  Part II  Story 1  –  Part II  Story  2 & 3

Here’s another story where the gal I rented to suddenly has a significant other move in with her and her 2 kids.  Before long and they are fighting like cats and dogs and the rent is not getting paid.  After not getting the rent I went down to check on the place and could tell that no one was living there. I heard that she and her boyfriend had a fight.  He kicked in the back door and the place was a mess.  All of the furniture was gone except the furniture which wasn’t worth keeping and their were mounds of trash throughout the house. 

Well, I’m looking around at the damage and the police pull up to the curb, get out and come up to the door and ask me what I’m doing.  Suddenly the tenant appears out of nowhere yelling “officers, officers, that man is trespassing; I rent that house and I haven’t vacated tenancy“. So, I’ll tell you right now, if you’re going to be a landlord you better learn what your tenants rights are, because chances are THEY KNOW THEM; so should you.The officers turn to me and ask me if this is true (that she has not vacated tenancy) and I say, “yes” so they tell me I have to leave and must deal with the situation in the proper legal manner.  This was a huge frustration because I didn’t know where this gal was staying and I was trying to avoid attorney costs.  My advice if you find yourself in a similar situation, at this point you need to have the advice of good eviction attorney.  Oh - must mention - while the police are talking to me the tenant disappears!

I waited several days hoping that she might call me but that never happened.  So, once again I went down to check things out but this time I took my camcorder with me.   I went into the house (nothing had changed) and video taped the mess and mounds of trash and just about the time I’m done - who shows up - THE POLICE AGAIN.  (The irony here is that I’ve had much more urgent matters requiring officer assistance and I can never get them to come that quickly.)  And once again the tenant appears out of nowhere yelling - you guessed - “officers, officers, that man is trespassing on my property.  I rent that house and haven’t vacated tenancy“.

After speaking with the officers I lock the door and the tenant is outside the gate so I approach her with the papers and she takes off running and I’m so desperate that I chase after her pleading with her to stop to no avail.Finally I yell out “You win ———, I give up, that’s your place.  You’ve told the police twice your still living there so I’m going down to Child Protective Services with this video and I am going to show them how you live with your two children and the police will be my witnesses that you’re still living there.“I kid you not, that gal stopped dead in her tracks, turned around, and came to me crying buckets of tears, pleading with me not to go to CDS.  She gave me the keys and signed papers on the spot in exchange for my promise not to do as I threatened.

What a relief!Are you sure you want to be a landlord? 

If you have property in the Fresno area that you need to sell or rent call me.  I can help.
 © Randy “Lazarus” McAtee
    Owner/Broker Lazarus Realty
    559-301-1647
    email me

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NEW YORK (AP) — The decline in U.S. home prices accelerated nationwide in July, posting the steepest drop in 16 years….( go here for full story ).

Browsing some of the local Realtor’s web sites I came across one that had a graphic market guage on it indicating the Fresno real estate market was in perfect balance. YEA RIGHT! This market sucks, and to be quite honest its sucking even worse than I thought it would.

Take a look at the 24 Hour Stats I just pulled up from the MLS

Add the numbers in the grey to get the homes inventory that came onto the market and we have 122 properties that came on the market. Now minus from that the homes that went Contingent and Pending = 26. Then divide 122/26 and you get 4.69 which means for every 1 property that went off the market 4.69 came on the market. The reason the SOLDS are not included in the above equation is that they are the homes that went pending/contingent 30-45 days ago that actually closed. We dont really know how many of the Contingent and Pending sales will actually close. But if we replace the Pendings and Contingents with the Solds then then we have 122/21 = 5.8 …. or a ratio of about 6 to 1. VERY IMBALANCED. For further proof of how imbalanced the market is just look at the ratio of Price Increases to Price Reductions.

Now in order to state this more simply, if the equations above don’t make sense, lets just say a balanced market would look like this:

50 properties come on the market
50 properties go off the market
50 price increases
50 price reductions

that’s a balanced market - where buyers and sellers are equal.

If you need a home, it may not be a bad time to buy; but if you need to sell… it’s tough. If you’re an investor the big question is: WHERE’S THE BOTTOM? Of course, if I could call market tops and bottoms I would be in better financial shape than I am. I love to trade stocks and this chart pretty much sums up how the market treats you:

click image or here to view larger

I was once a dot com multimillionaire. I lost more money in paper profits than the average real estate broker makes in 30 years of work …. So don’t even think to ask me when then market has bottomed. Had I known the top (of the recent runup in property values) , I would have done some things differently. Many of you are probably saying the same thing.

If you have property that needs to be sold, don’t let this negative information deter you from calling me to help you sell it. If you don’t absolutely need to sell the property right now - your best bet might be to wait and ride things out. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you when it will improve - and it could even get worse ( I hope not ). One of my friends was able to find tenant for his home that he couldn’t sell. I recently got a 3 year lease option for an owner of a commercial property that was sitting on the market with no bidders.

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