10 Tips To "Go Green" at Home

Join Prudential California Realty in making a difference in our world!  View our 10 quick and easy ways to save energy and "Go Green" in your home.

Prudential California Realty Will Find Your Perfect Home

Visit www.prucalhomes.com today to contact a Ventura County Real Estate Expert, or to search for your perfect home.

More Americans Optimistic About Homeownership

Prudential recently released results of its first quarter Consumer Outlook Survey showing that Americans’ sentiment toward real estate is growing increasingly favorable. A full 77% of consumers feel that the real estate market and property values will recover, representing a four-point improvement from year-end results and seven-point jump over the same period a year ago.

According to the national survey, home ownership remains important to 96% of Americans, especially among women and Generations X and Y. So what is motivating the optimism?  Prospective buyers are motivated by historically low interest rates (currently in the low 3-4% range) and attractive home prices in many markets. In fact, 87% of respondents said Americans considering a home purchase believe that now is the time while mortgage rates and prices are low.

“Anticipation seems to be building for both buyers and sellers this spring buying season,” said Prudential California Realty Broker/Owner Bob Majorino. “Consumers are aware that the market is moving and, with growing optimism, more people are realizing their dreams of homeownership.”

Prospective home-sellers indicated that “finding the right house to buy first” and “making a profit” were the primary reasons they would list their homes this spring. For those considering selling in this low inventory market, they have a major opportunity to make a profit at this time, while still managing to move up or down and still get a great deal. Multiple offers are rapidly driving home prices up and the demand for home sellers is at an all time high.

Additional Key Observations Include

• 87% of sellers are committed to seeing a sale through if their home doesn't sell quickly, and 67% are open to additional guidance from their broker/agent on how to better market their home. 62% are willing to make repairs or redecorate in order to attract more interest.
• Among all age groups surveyed, Generations X and Y remain most confident that real estate and property values will recover.
• 78% of women said homeownership was “very important” vs. 70% of men.

“Our survey data shows that people are feeling better about their personal situations and the U.S. economy,” said Stephen Phillips, chief operating officer for Prudential California Realty's parent company HSF Affiliates. “At the same time, respondents’ views of residential real estate have grown increasingly favorable. We believe more consumers will enter the market this year to capitalize on mortgage and pricing opportunities and to secure their part of the American dream.”

The full survey details are available upon request. An infographic illustrating survey findings is available here.

Prudential Real Estate Outlook Survey MethodologyInterviews with 2,500 Americans who are “in the market” to buy or sell a home were conducted online by Edelman Berland in February, 2013. Respondents are aged 25-64 with a household income of at least $50,000, and either recently bought/sold a home or are considering buying/selling a home. The margin of error is ± 2.0% for all respondents.

For buyers or sellers looking to take advantage of the outstanding market conditions, or to refer a friend who is considering buying or selling, please visit www.prucalhomes.com to contact an agent today!

Real Estate Market Gaining Momentum Nationwide

March brought additional good news for residential real estate with home prices continuing a steady ascent, underwater homeownership falling and homebuilders as busy as they’ve been in more than four years. 

The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite index released March 26 showed January home prices posting their largest year-over-year increase since the summer of 2006. The index, which tracks single-family home prices in 20 large cities, improved 8.1% with all 20 cities posting year-over-year price gains.

Nineteen of the 20 cities in the index showed acceleration in their year-over-year returns with only Detroit posting a modest price slowdown. Even New York home prices, which endured more than two years of consecutive year-over-year declines, turned higher. Phoenix and Las Vegas registered the highest annual gains along with San Francisco.

David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, suggested more price strength ahead. “Economic Data continues to support the housing recovery,” he said. “Single-family home building permits and housing starts posted double-digit, year-over-year increases in February 2013. Steady employment and low borrowing rates pushed inventories down to their lower post-recession levels.” 

Logically, the lack of inventory has slowed home sales in some markets yet rising prices are encouraging more people to place their homes on the market. Existing homes for sale rose 10% in February, according to the National Association of REALTORS^®.

Rising home prices are also driving down the threshold of underwater homeownership. CoreLogic reported in late March that another 200,000 residential properties returned to a state of positive equity during Q4. For all of 2012, 1.7 million homes moved from negative to positive equity, CoreLogic said. 

Accordingly, household real estate wealth increased by $1.4 trillion in 2012, according to the Federal Reserve, which suggests that more homeowners will return to the real estate market to buy and sell.

Higher home prices also have activated homebuilders, who in February broke ground on a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 910,000 homes, the second-fastest pace since June 2008, according to the Commerce Department.

In all, real estate’s recovery enjoys a broad base and balance is returning to the market – just in time for the spring buying season. If you or someone you know is considering taking advantage of this incredible opportunity in real estate, please visit www.prucalhomes.com or call (888) 352-1652.