Due to no the small number of homes being built during the recession, there just isn’t enough homes to keep up with demand causing prices to skyrocket.  But as these prices become less affordable, you will start to see homes sitting on market longer than they have in the past.

Chris Thornberg, economist and founding partner of Beacon Economics, said looking too much at the recent slowdown in sales is not the smartest idea. He said the economy is still strong and looking at sales numbers alone doesn’t tell the whole story.

The median price of a single-family home in San Diego rose 3 percent between January and February to $614,000 amid continued sluggish sales.

That was the latest report from the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors, which said Wednesday single-family home sales totaled 1,337 in February, nearly the same as 1,339 in January despite fewer days in the month. But year-over-year, sales were down 12 percent.

Prices for condominiums and townhomes rose 5 percent month-to-month to a median of $426,000 — the highest ever. But sales fell 3 percent month-to-month, and were down 5 percent compared to last year.

The realtors noted that “prices continue to hike upward, while the actual number of sales labors under a lack of inventory.” The year-over-year increase in median price totaled 10 percent for single-family homes and 12 percent for condos and townhomes.

“Prevailing mortgage rates are starting to rise, which will have an impact on home-buying decisions,” said association President Steve Fraioli. “I’m hoping that optimism about the economy will contribute to shaking loose the market’s supply of homes this spring.”

The top zip codes for sales, with 31 each, were 92024 in Encinitas, 92114 in Encanto and 92019 in El Cajon.

A $21.5 million mansion on the Del Mar coast that closed in February was the most expensive home sold in the past 10 years — and one of the most expensive ever sold — in San Diego County. The oceanfront property is 6,200 square feet, with 5 bedrooms and 9 baths on 1.11 acres.

San Diego Real Estate Prices Continue to Climb Amid Sluggish Sales

When it comes to house valuations, real estate agents and sellers have always complained about how appraisers are sinking deals with low and possibly inaccurate appraisals. You might be surprised to find that they might be doing a better job of getting it right.

Quicken Loans recently found that appraiser opinions of value in April were actually higher than homeowner estimates in over 63% of metro areas that was measured.

For example, in Washington Quicken Loans have found that appraiser values were on average 1.46% higher than homeowner perception of the value of their home.

Homeowners in San Diego and the nation’s strongest markets continue to be happy when they decide to sell noting the recent large increases in appreciation.

Quicken Loans says appraised values of real estate in San Jose, CA came in 6.73% higher on average than what sellers were actually expecting in April. Other notable areas were San Francisco with 5.47% higher values and Denver with 4.09% more than expected.

If you have wondered who that hairy guy was sitting next to me when I appraise your home in San Diego, his name is Nitro.

He is a 95 pound yellow lab, loves long walks on the beach, curling up on the rug with a nice chewie stick and going along with me on all my San Diego appraisals.

With over 8 years of experience in the field, Nitro knows the best spots to find a hidden canyon in Hillcrest or Mission Hills or the best place to find wild animals out in the outbacks of El Cajon or Ramona.  He hasn’t been in to too many homes in San Diego when doing appraisal services but will usually wait patiently for his partner to return to the vehicle.

From time to time he has been invited to hang out with other homeowners dogs while getting their homes appraised for estate purposes.  Today he was able to enjoy a chilling swim in the ocean at Dog Beach in Ocean Beach after appraising a multi-million dollar custom beach home overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  His partner got to enjoy another breathtaking home with incredible views while Nitro enjoyed the ocean when the Ocean Beach home inspection was completed.

If you need a valuation on your complex ocean front homes, make sure to contact the best beach community home appraiser at 858-232-3348.

It is always nice to get away from work and San Diego from time to time.  The past few months have been really busy doing Real Estate Appraisals throughout San Diego County.

This year we took a nice vacation to Cowboy Town Arizona where we got to shoot guns, ride horses and ATVs with the family.  It was a great trip and I am getting prepared for the Holiday San Diego Winter Home Buying Season.

I am always available to do pre-listing appraisal services throughout San Diego around the holidays, but it sure was nice to take a mini-vacation and head out in to the desert to spend time with family.

The market has been really crazy in San Diego Recently and I have been doing a lot of real estate appraisals in San Diego because of the refinance boom due to an increase in appreciation.  There was a little home buying boom as well a few months back, but that has slowed down as expected during the holidays.

If you need any help with a pre-listing or home valuation, feel free to contact me as I have returned from the desert and am now scheduling appointments through the end of the year.

Thank you for your business!

Bryan Knowlton

http://appraiseallrealestate.com

Ok, I have to admit with over 14 years of experience appraising thousands of homes in San Diego… I might not be the BEST appraiser in San Diego.

What!? How can I say that?!  Well, I do not appraise commercial properties because I focus 100% on residential.  But I also don’t appraise mobile homes… So there might be someone out there that can do more appraisal jobs out there, but I am the best at what I do.

I am a certified residential real estate appraiser fully licensed and insured in San Diego with over 14 years of experience.  I am also a certified expert witness and I would definitely say I am one of the best residential home appraisers in San Diego.

So if you wan to hire the best ‘all around’ appraiser or ‘jack of all trades’ (master of none) appraiser, then you can look around and find another San Diego Appraiser that might be able to help you.

But if you are looking for one of the Best Residential Real Estate Appraisers in San Diego, please contact me at 858-232-3348.

Thanks!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!!

If you live in San Diego, you should definitely check out all the benefits to become a member of the San Diego Zoological Society.  You get admission to both the San Diego Zoo and the Wild Animal Park (Safari) and have the opportunity to attend cool events like the Zoo Keeper Club where you get in to the Zoo before opening hours to meet the animals and learn more about the Zoological Society.

The San Diego Zoo is located within the beautiful communities of South Park, Hillcrest and Downtown San Diego.  I am sure there are a few communities I am leaving out as it is quite large and borders many communities and is a valuable addition to the area.  I have appraised many homes and condominiums within the Zoo and Balboa Park boundaries and there is definitely a positive influence in value to the homes with close proximity to both.

There are also a large number of historical homes located within close proximity to Balboa Park and the Zoo and it is best to always use a Certified Real Estate Appraiser in San Diego to help determine the value of the property.

During this Zookeeper club event we got to learn a lot of great information about the Zoo and what makes the San Diego Zoo such a great part of our community.

Take time and enjoy your city!

Bryan

It’s hard to believe San Diego ever gets cold!  You would be amazed that in the past 14 years that I have been a real estate appraiser, I have only been rained on maybe 4 times in my entire career!

When I originally got started appraising in San Diego, I would carry around this umbrella in my car (I still have it) and it would hook on your shoulder so you could sketch on a clip board and have your hands free to take pictures and do your inspection.

So the umbrella has not been used more than a couple times throughout my career and I am very thankful for that.  I went out last week on a day that was predicted over 70% chance of rain, it rained all the way up to Ramona, I did my inspection which took about an hour and not a drop came down.  As soon as I got back in my car and headed back down to San Diego it was pouring again.

This is my Son Evan and Dog Fiona.  You can easily tell who likes their hats and who does not.

So get ready for the colder weather.  I hope we will see some amazing rain in San Diego like we haven’t seen since the early 90’s!  That would be a good thing and we can handle it.  If your home is located in a flood zone, make sure to check your home insurance and make sure you have the proper coverage.  Same goes for all the slide prone locations, especially those in Linda Vista that were built upon unstable landfills.

Better to be prepared!  We have been having some crazy weather in San Diego!

If you need a Halloween Appraisal for Estate Purposes, please contact Bryan the San Diego Appraiser at 858-232-3348.

If you are looking to get a FHA / HUD Loan, your home will be required to get a FHA appraisal inspection. Although there are a number of issues that can be exposed during the appraisal process, these are the most common issues San Diego County homeowners experience which can cause delays in getting the FHA loan they are applying for. All these issues are required to be fixed prior to the loan being funded.

You will save yourself a lot of time and frustration by addressing these issues prior to the home appraiser coming out for the inspection.

When it comes down to an FHA appraisal, the appraiser looks for issues related to Safety, Soundness and Security. In addition to inspecting your home for valuation purposes, the FHA inspection is meant to make sure the property is safe, habitable and that the home will serve as collateral for the FHA loan.

Below are the most common problems found during the inspection process in San Diego County.

1. Missing Carbon Monoxide Detectors – The Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2010 requires that a carbon monoxide detector to be placed in every dwelling unit and typically outside of bedroom areas that will be occupied by humans. These are required in properties that burn fossils for appliances, heaters, fireplaces or an attached garage.
2. Missing Earthquake Strapping, TPRV’s and Overflow Pipes on Water Heaters – These are requirements for traditional tank water heaters and do not apply to the newer tankless designs. A lot of older homes are missing the double strapping for earthquakes as well as the temperateure pressure relief valves and overflow pipes.
3. Chipped and Peeling Paint on Pre-1978 homes – Leaded paint chips have always been a problem in older homes and it is a good idea to ensure any leaded paint be adequately sealed and prevented from chipping. Some measures include scraping, removal and repainting. During the process, all chips must be collected and removed from the property.
4. Poor Roof Condition / Leaks – It is important that roofs must adequately stop moisture from entering the home. There also must be at least 2 years of remaining life for a roof to adequately pass the FHA inspection. If there are signs a roof has had problems in the past or current negative conditions exist, the appraisal will be noted and repairs will need to be completed prior to funding.
5. Exposed, damaged or frayed electrical wiring – Many older homes and those that are currently being modernized or repaired frequently have exposed wiring which will not be overlooked. It is important that any exposed wiring be covered and any damaged wiring be repaired. A missing outlet cover or switch box plate might not seem like an issue to the common homeowner, but it will cause problems in the home inspection process. Most exterior outets also require weatherproof covers.
6. All Utilities must be On and in working order – There are many homeowners in San Diego County that do not use their heating systems and they have not turned them on for years. Sometimes getting them to function at the time of inspection does not work. You should make sure your utilities are working prior to inspection. This is also very important when the home has been vacant for a while or when the home is only used for vacation purposes. If the utilities are not working at the time of inspection, the appraiser will have to come back out, resulting in higher fees.

Although it might not be possible to address all of the potential problems you might have with an FHA inspection, these are the most common problems that you can address prior to the real estate appraiser inspecting your home. This will hopefully save you delays during the FHA loan process.

The FHA appraisal inspection is mainly used to determine value and should not be used as a replacement for a thorough home inspection by a qualified professional home inspector.

So you might be thinking how an appraiser selects comps for your San Diego Real Estate Appraisal. There are guidelines that appraisers have to follow when choosing comparable sales. I will share you with the five principles that are used from the Fannie Mae Seller’s Guide from pages 597-598. This will help you understand some of the guidelines that an appraiser will use to select comparable properties to your home as well as give you some direction in case you are planning to share sales data with an appraiser during an inspection.

This is straight from Fannie Mae on comparable property sales selection.

1. Bare Minimum: Real estate appraisers must use at least 3 closed sales in their report

2. One Year: Comparable sales must have sold within the past 12 months. There is an exception to go over 1 year from sale, especially if they are completely relevent and there are a lack of sales in the area of comparable homes. (custom homes, no similar sized homes, views, proximity to the ocean, etc.)

3. Subject as Comp Four: In some instances the subject can be used as an additional comparable property if it has sold recently. This might seem strange, but it is sometimes used when sales are limited.

4. No 90-day Rule: Real estate appraisers do not have to use sales in the past 90 days. If there are better comparable sales outside of the 90 day period, the appraiser still has the option to use them. Fannie Mae states that it may be appropriate to use an older sale with a time adjustment rather than a mor recent sale that requires multiple adjustments. Many lenders do have a 90 day comp rule, but this is not a Fannie Mae rule.

5. No One-Mile Radius: Many lenders would like the appraiser to stick to comparable selection within 1 mile, but this is not a Fannie Mae rule. Appraisers should always use the most competitive sales available. Sometimes the best comparables are available within a few blocks, up to a mile, but in other instances, the best comparables can be up to a couple miles away. It is up to the experienced appraiser to locate the best comparable sales within the subjects market area or competitive neighborhood. You have to consider if buyers are looking for homes in competitive areas outside the immediate neighborhood of the subject, this can also be considered a good comparable property.

Estate and non-lender appraisals can be different. Fannie Mae and lender rules do not apply to private appraisals used for divorce, estate planning, bankruptcy, date of death, etc… Many of these guidelines are reasonable and many appraisers apply these same rules to all of their appraisals, but the proper comparable selection to determine the opinion of value is always the number one rule. We simply use the best sales to help show the market.

If you would like more information on comparable selection in the San Diego real estate market, feel free to call me at 858-232-3348

Sometimes it might be difficult to come up with a sales price on a larger home that might be much larger than the predominant homes in the area.  This is where a home listing appraisal by Appraise All really helps out, but these will help guide your way if you decide to do it on your own.

If there are a lot of sales in the area, but no good comparables based on square footage these tips should help.

1. Check the public record, find out when the increase was made, is the home newer?  Were there possibly unpermitted additions that have been made to the property that are not reflected in the public record?  Was there a garage conversion?  Has there been any sales over the past few years of similar sized properties?  This will guide your approach and possibly give you areas to examine to determine what the value of the additional square footage actually gives to the property when making your comparison to recently sold comparables.

2. Check the immediate neighborhood for older sales and adjust for appreciation or depreciation.  Compare the difference in sales price of these larger homes to the predominant sized smaller homes in the area.

3. Come up with a price percentage difference and use this to compare what these older sales sold for and then use that percentage to see what your larger property should roughly sell for in the current market.  You can also double check with the local appreciation and depreciation figures of the smaller sized properties over that time period to see if the figure is accurate.

4. Check out competitive neighborhoods in the area, expand your search area to see how larger sized homes are selling in comparison to smaller homes in the neighborhoods outside of the subject neighborhood.  This should also give you a good indicator of proper list prices.

The best thing you can do is to get a high quality full appraisal performed on the property prior to setting the list price.  Far more extensive than a BPO or comparative sales analysis, a full appraisal will take in to account all the indicators of value for your property.  For the small cost of an appraisal, it could potentially save you tens of thousands of dollars by having your property sell below market value or having your property sit on market for months on end with no sale.

Contact us for more information.  Appraise All Real Estate serving San Diego County for over 14 years.  858-232-3348

It has been 4 years since President Barack Obama signed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act into law and after some recent polling, it was found that most Americans feel that it has not done enough to protect them from a replay of the 2008 financial crisis which led to the disaster of a lifetime and which the global economy has yet to recover from.
Dodd-Frank is supposed to work like a 3 stage system to provide better monitoring and limits on risk-taking. It is supposed to make accidents less likely to happen and keep our financial institutions safe in the event things got a little bumpy. There was added capital to make them more likely to survive and more limits. If this all still failed systems are supposed to be in place to allow them to collapse without bringing down the entire financial system and our economy with it.
The regulators have been hard at work and I am grateful that we are finally seeing some people getting some type of punishment for what happened in the last meltdown, but the regulators have not completed this fail-safe system in the past 4 years.
Things are warming up in the real estate industry, lending requirements are being lessened and consumer confidence is on the rise. I guess there are 2 positives there, but that 3rd scares me. Without these stages completed, we are still vulnerable to another crisis.  Home sales in San Diego have been showing record amounts of appreciation over the past couple years.  I have also been appraising San Diego real estate for over 14 years and I can tell you in some areas, real estate is appreciating too fast.
The Volcker Rule is in the first stage and prevents deposit-taking banks from getting involved with speculative trading. Federal Reserve stress tests help ensure that large banks are prepared for the obvious risks. But the global coordination of this data is difficult and have left regulators far from completing an early warning system.
U.S. regulators also have set capital requirements for banks to $5 for every $100 in assets, which would allow them to absorb a 5% loss. This is in the second stage. Although it is better than what was required prior to the last crisis, this is far less than what research has estimated.
The regulators have completed the 3rd task of creating an orderly liquidation authority which will allow the FDIC to take over and recapitalize a failing company while keeping its subsidiaries running to further support the system. This 3rd mechanism has yet to be tested and even the FDIC vice chairman doubts it could handle a crises like we experienced in 2008.
In addition, thanks to Dodd-Frank studies have found that creditors lend more cheaply to the largest banks based on the assumption that the goverment will bail them out in case of an emergency.
And what ever happened with Customary and Reasonable? LOL

I came across a really interesting article the other day on how Chase is going to stop lending.  I know a year back they stopped doing student loans, but I couldn’t find any additional information recently about them getting out of the home mortgage industry.

The Chase website still has all the information about refinances and mortgages, so I was really curious to see if this is true.

The post was on a website called the National Real Estate Post – and it talks about bad lending practices and what recently led to the sub-prime mortgage industry collapse.

Being a real estate appraiser, I have completed appraisals for Chase in the past, but after a number of low paying appraisal management companies started sending out their work, I have not done any additional work for them for years.

I am really curious if they have completely got out of home lending and what the affect will be on the real estate industry.

Hey Everyone, I thought I would create a short little video about my appraisal services in Chula Vista.  I appraise a lot of homes in Chula Vista for lending purposes, but I also do a lot of work for divorce, bankruptcy and for many other estate purposes.

If you need an appraisal on your home or real estate in Chula Vista, I can provide you with a professional appraisal by a very experienced appraiser that has been appraising this area for over 14 years.

Bryan Knowlton
Appraise All
858-232-3348

Have we come a long way or what?  With the result of a stronger economy and higher home values, the number of homes in California entering the foreclosure process last quarter is the lowest since late 2005.
There were 17,524 Notice of Default (NoDs) recorded at California county recorders offices during the April to June 2014 period.  That is a decline of 8.8% since the prior period and down 31.9% since the second quarter of 2013 according to DataQuick.
“It looks like the mortgage servicers doing the foreclosure paperwork are systematically working through a backlog. While their pile is getting smaller, they’re working at a steady pace. With one exception, the number of NoDs we’ve seen filed each quarter over the last year-and-a-half hasn’t changed much, and probably just reflects staffing and workload logistics,” said John Karevoll, DataQuick analyst.
So you can count on quicker processing of properties going in to the foreclosure process and we have also noticed an increase in the banks and primary lenders not giving as much time for homeowners facing forclosures as they once have in the past.
I know there was always a rumor of a large number of San Diego REO (real estate owned by banks) properties, but I have not noticed much of this inventory and would be surprised if there is a large amount of REO inventory in San Diego.
I appraise a lot of real estate in Chula Vista, one of the areas most affected during the real estate boom and bust.  From what I have seen, you would expect a large number of REO inventory in these areas.  I have not come across many REO properties in this area when searching public records for comparable properties during the home appraisal process.
It still appears though that most of the loans going into default are still from the 2005-2007 period.  The median origination quarter for defaulted loans is still third-quarter 2006 when anyone with a pulse could get a home mortgage.
I found it interesting that the most active ‘beneficiaries’ in the formal foreclosure process were Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Nationstar… All whom have terrible relationships with real estate appraisers.   They do not pay appraisers based on quality of the appraisal services provided but prefer to send out requests where the appraiser that is willing to accept the lowest pay for the appraisal wins.  I have a complete list of appraisal management companies where I put the best ones first for that very reason.  To help fellow appraiser out and avoid the bad ones.
Trust Deeds recorded, or the loss of the home to the original lender totaled 7,392 last quarter, the lowest level for any quarter since 2006.  The all time high was 79,511 in the third quarter of 2008.  Ouch.  California’s all-time low was 637 in the second-quarter of 2005 when the market was flying high.
Foreclosures and Short Sales continue to go down in San Diego County which continues to strengthen the market.  While record amounts of appreciation recorded over the past few months, for a while there it appeared things were going to get crazy again.  But time and time again during the appraisal process recently, I have found current market condition are showing a stable market with minimal appreciation.  That could be a good thing to increase inventory and avoid the next bubble.
What do you think?
Bryan Knowlton

Certified San Diego Appraiser
http://appraiseallrealestate.com

Source: DataQuick; DQNews.com

That is a very tough question to answer in today’s market. The number of sales in San Diego County have decreased over the months, but that is primarily due to low inventory which is helping to keep home values up.

Many sellers are waiting for the top of the market to sell their homes, but many agents warn that this could be a faulty endeavor. You will never be able to time things perfectly. You will need to base your decision on other factors in addition to possible sales price.

One of the best ways to determine the amount your home is likely to sell for is by using a pre-listing appraisal. This will give you the most accurate opinion of value with a data backed appraisal on your home.
We all know a bad listing can result in either getting far less money for the sale of your real estate while a property listed above market value for your neighborhood will result in many additional months on market. I have seen numerous properties on market for over a year in communities where they should only have been on market for 90 days or less.

I have been completeing pre-listing real estate appraisal services on properties throughout San Diego county to help sellers and agents come up with a good listing price prior to listing the real estate for sale.
The market is looking good right now with appreciation showing throghout numerous communiteis and cities within San Diego County. For the most recent data, you can find it at DataQuick Union Tribune Chart. But as stated before, without an appraisal, you can’t assume your property has received the same appreciation as the rest of your zip code.

For example I recently noted in May 2014 appreciation rates in Chula Vista zip code showed an appreciation increase of 16% on single family residences. After running a search for comparables within a specific neighborhood, sales were actually declining. If a homeowner or agent did not have a data backed appraisal, most likely they would have listed the property far above market value for the area. This is becoming more and more common in todays market.

You can check out the appreciation and depreciation rates over at DataQuick here: http://dqnews.com/charts/monthly-charts/sdut-charts/zipsdut.aspx

I also found a good amount of information at Zillow and Trulia. You can find tons of great up to date information on San Diego Real estate for the buyer and seller at these websites.

http://www.zillow.com/san-diego-ca/home-values/
http://www.trulia.com/real_estate/San_Diego-California/

If you would like a very accurate and unbiased opinion of value, the best investment you can make prior to listing your home for sale is to get an accurate appraisal. I would suggest hiring a Certified Real Estate appraiser with experience in your area. If you would like my help, feel free to call Bryan at 858-232-3348.

I just made a number of real estate appraisal services for San Diego.  The provide my basic company information and links to other San Diego Appraisal websites for different cities and counties within our community.

I will eventually move these around and find better places to place all the videos, but in the meantime I thought I would share them on the blog.

Again, if you need your home appraised in San Diego, please feel free to contact me at 858-232-3348

Real Estate Appraiser Website
Home Appraisal Services Video

Read More

From time to time you really need that appraisal yesterday. We know how it is. You might have waited till the last minute to file your taxes and you need to get an appraisal on your San Diego Home, we can help you with that.

Other circumstances involve helping a loved one get out of jail.  Time is really of the essence here and we can provide a same day inspection and deliver the report the same day as well.  Due to many circumstances, it is best to call to get a fee quote on our same day rush appraisal services in San Diego.

Just pick up the phone and call 858-232-3348 and we will look up your property address in San Diego County and provide a realistic turn time and fee quote for your home appraisal.

Thank you!

Bryan Knowlton

Certified Real Estate Appraiser