San Diego Home Prices Slightly Down in April

San Diego County home prices dipped a bit in April, according to data released today from San Diego based company DataQuick Information Systems.

The stats for April show a median price of $321,750 for all home sold, down 1.1% from April, 2010, and down 1% from this March. Sales volume was also down slightly from last April, showing a .5% decrease, but up 7% from March, with 3,277 total sales.

A big contributing factor to this decline is that the lending environment is still challenging for borrowers. But, the good news is that interest rates have hit a new 2011 low this week.

At Neely, Barrow & Associates we have found that this continued pressure on prices, accompanied by historically low interest rates, and the increase of spring inventory has brought out quite a few buyers. We are especially seeing a lot of investors flooding the market as they know that San Diego real estate is on sale and now is the time to buy!

If you are looking to buy, start your search for San Diego homes with us.

San Diego Foreclosure Friday - Volume 13

Welcome to another San Diego Foreclosure Friday! Once again we will be exploring some of the best of the best foreclosure properties throughout San Diego county for the week.

This week we have an update on a previous listing that I featured back in April on San Diego Foreclosure Friday - a 4-unit property that just sold in foreclosure in Bankers Hill. Then we take a look at some foreclosures in 92103. These two properties are both in the Mission Hills neighborhood of San Diego. The first is a large townhouse that just sold in foreclosure. And the next is a expansive, almost 4600 square foot, luxury Mediterranean property, with water views in foreclosure in North Mission Hills!

SOLD Cash $650,000 (5/29/2009)

LISTED AT $581,130

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $1,100,000 (12/30/2004)

Just outside of downtown San Diego sits this income generating gem in Bankers Hill. You're just a few blocks from Balboa Park, downtown, and minutes to the airport in this vintage 1920s 4-unit property. Property consists of one 2 bedroom unit, two 1 bedroom units, and one studio!

SOLD $759,000 (5/28/2009)

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $960,000 (5/19/2004)

Built in 2003, this foreclosure in Mission Hills sold for just over $200,000 less than it's previous sale in 2004. This row home has plenty of room with 3 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths, and over 2,500 square feet. Some of the great features include hardwood floors, granite counters and stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, a fireplace, and large walk-in custom built closets in the bedrooms. Best of all, it's walking distance to all of the great shops and restaurants in both Mission Hills and Hillcrest, making it the perfect mix of comfort and convenience.

CURRENTLY LISTED $1,650,000

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $2,530,000 (11/03/2005)

This expansive Mediterranean Mission Hills foreclosure property is priced almost $1,000,000 below it's most recent 2005 sale! You won't find many Mission Hills foreclosures like this one! At almost 4,600 square feet, with 5 bedrooms and 5 1/2 baths, a wine cellar, media room, enormous gourmet kitchen, infinity pool, and panoramic views all the way from Coronado to La Jolla, what more could you ask for in a foreclosure? Well, how about being just a 5 minute car ride to both downtown San Diego and the airport, and about a 5 minute walk to all the great Mexican restaurants in Old Town?

If you would like more info on any of these listings, other foreclosure properties throughout the San Diego area, or general information about buying foreclosure properties, please check out my website page on buying San Diego foreclosures. You can easily contact me from the form on the bottom of that page, or via email at Michael@NeelyBarrow.com .

You can also check out my website to search all the homes for sale in San Diego.

Be sure to check back again next week for another San Diego Foreclosure Friday!

San Diego Foreclosure Friday - Volume 12

Hola mi gente! With the last name Barrow I'm obviously not of Latin decent. But, this week San Diego Foreclosure Friday takes on a decidedly Spanish flair. It's also the biggest San Diego Foreclosure Friday to date, with five of the best foreclosures in San Diego County to chose from. I couldn't decide between two foreclosures that had just sold, so I decided to give you both!

The first two properties are updates on previous listings that I've had on here in the recent weeks, so you'll get to see what these properties closed for. The first is a cute house that was in foreclosure in the Talmadge neighborhood of San Diego. The second is a great condo in Fashion Valley for under $180,000!

Foreclosure properties number 3 and 4 are two recent closings that are new to San Diego Foreclosure Friday. The first is an expansive contemporary Spanish ocean-view home built in 2004 that was in foreclosure in the Muirlands neighborhood of La Jolla. The next is another cute Spanish home sold in foreclosure in North Park.

And last but not least is an available foreclosure in north Mission Hills. This traditional 1920s Spanish last sold in 2007 for $1,200,000. You won't believe what it is listed at today now that it's bank owned!

SOLD $413,000 (5/18/2009)

LISTED AT $396,000

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $750,000 (7/16/2007)

This classic Talmadge home on a quite street is perfect for the first-time home buyer! 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1389 square-feet, with hardwood floors, a fireplace, and a detached 2 car garage...and the best part, it's under $400,000!

SOLD $179,900 (5/22/2009)

LISTED AT $179,000

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $300,000 (3/3/2005)

This large 850 square-foot, 1 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath condo on the west side of Fashion Valley is just five minutes from the bay and beaches of San Diego. Perfect for the first-time home buyer looking to take advantage of the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit, or an investor looking to build their rental portfolio. This gorgeous complex features 2 pools, 2 spas, and 4 tennis courts. All this for under $180,000!

SOLD $1,630,000 (5/20/2009)

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $2,465,000 (11/21/2005)

Built in 2004, this contemporary Spanish home in the Muirlands neighborhood of La Jolla was some one's steal in foreclosure! Enjoy ocean views from this 4700 square foot, 4 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath home with walls of glass, soaring ceilings, and a roof top deck. This newer home comes with a gourmet kitchen, large master suite with balcony, media room, and a 3 car garage.

SOLD $532,000 (5/22/2009)

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $785,000 (4/4/2005)

With 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1820 square feet and updated throughout to compliment it's original 1930s Spanish charm, this foreclosure in the North Park neighborhood of San Diego was a great deal at $532,000!

CURRENTLY LISTED $699,800

PREVIOUSLY SOLD $1,2000,000 (2/6/2007)

Great location in north Mission Hills! This foreclosure property is listed for about half of what it sold for just over 2 years ago! This 1920s Spanish, with wood floors, and period details throughout, comes with 2 bedrooms, 1 1/2 baths, and almost 1600 square feet.

If you would like more info on either one of these listings, other foreclosure properties throughout the San Diego area, or general information about buying foreclosure properties, please check out my website page on buying San Diego foreclosures. You can easily contact me from the form on the bottom of that page, or via email at Michael@NeelyBarrow.com

You can also check out my website to search all the homes for sale in San Diego.

Be sure to check back again next week for another San Diego Foreclosure Friday!

Latest home price numbers...This bad news could be your good news.

Okay, so which news do you want first...The good or the bad?

Let's start with the bad.

The dreaded S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks prices in 20 cities throughout the U.S., released it's November report, and once again the numbers didn't look good. I'll spare you the boredom of reading all the numbers, but will tell you that San Diego experienced another 2.3% drop in prices from October, and a 25.8% drop year-over-year (meaning November 2007 to November 2008). This isn't really "breaking news," however, as this is now the 28Th consecutive month that this report has registered declines.

"Um, hello? I thought you said there was good news?"

Well, there is good news for buyers. The major reason that these numbers look so bad is because an increasing number of these sales over the last year have been foreclosures and short-sales. These properties tend to sell at "bargain basement" prices as banks look to quickly unload their inventory. Add in historically low mortgage rates to the mix and you have a perfect storm for buyers.

"There's a pretty active housing market, it's simply at a lower-priced inventory," says Michael Feder, chief executive of the New York based derivatives firm, Radar Logic.

According to their data, and a recent story in Forbes, real estate transactions in San Diego are up 90% in the last few months as buyers compete for the available bargains. (See video below for more)

We are definitely seeing a lot of first-time buyers and investors jumping back in to the San Diego real estate market. In fact, the majority of our transactions in 2008 were with buyers, and almost 90% of those buyers bought a property that was in foreclosure! These dramatic price drops are bringing affordability back down to earth and savvy buyers back into the market.