Just an update.....

You may want to explore pre-foreclosures (or short sales) instead of foreclosures. We haven’t really had a lot of foreclosures in the Bay Farm/Harbor Bay part of Alameda, but have had our share of short sales. With short sales, it may take longer to get the lender to agree to the lower price (less than what the homeowners owe on the property) but it may be worth it to the buyer who has the patience.

Also, short sales have put other property owners who are putting their homes for sale to be more competitive with their list prices.

Alameda has definitely held its own in terms of market activity, i.e., number of sales even though prices, on the average, are 20% lower today than they were in 2007.

As you have herd now is a great time to buy a home. Alameda is a very unique market that has not seen the same kind of depreciation as many other places. I have grown and up lived there and went to school there. The Alameda market, specifically bay farm is unique. There has never been a better time in the last 30 years to get a mortgage. As many others have said Alameda has declined but it will appreciate in the coming years there is no denying about that.

Hi Ron, Not only have I lived in Alameda all my life but I have been a Broker for over 25 years. I feel that now is definitely the time to purchase a home. The prices have dropped everywhere and Alameda seems to have dropped about 15 to 20%. We are now seeing multiple offers again which means prices will slightly start escalating again. Regarding interest rates, when I purchased my home in 1973 it was 7 1/2%. and then went up to 16 and 18% for awhile. I never thought it would go lower. Boy was I wrong! I feel any rate below 7% is still very good. We have been spoiled with the low rates. We are now going back 20 years in which a buyer must have a steady job, a good down payment and good credit.
That is how it was when I first started in real estate. Alameda is a great city and buyers plan on living in their homes for 5 to 7 years their homes will be worth a lot more than when they purchased.
If you have any questions about Alameda, themarket and homes for sale, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Jean Powers CRS
Certified Residential Specialist
Real Estate Broker
510.908.9002
Homes@jeanpowers.com

While no one can predict exactly whats going to happen, we can only take an educated guess. The facts are, there is another wave of forclosurses coming. Weather it will be a huge wave effecting the economy badly or in small waves where we can deal with it, we dont know. All we know is that it 's coming. Second question about the interest rates, yes they are rising and that is why I suggest you buy now if you have the resources to do so. I can only assume that since you are buying in that price range, you'll be staying in the property for some time to come. As real estate is a 5-7 year cycle of ups and downs, we should be seeing the up pretty soon. This is my opinion only, it may not be the normal "neither here, nor there" type of answer because I try to answer all questions straight forward. I've been working in the Alameda and CCC area for the last 15 years so I have a pretty good idea of what's happening in our market. Sorry for the long winded answer..you asked a very good question which couldn't be answered with a simple yes or no. Thank you and Good Luck with everything. Please feel free to contact me for a list of homes in the BayFarm area.

Kamal Randhawa
Broker
510-932-1066

Hello Ron the correct answer is "it depends" If your planning on being in your home for the next 5 years you should ride out the market, we have had a decline in prices in Bayfarm of about 20-25% from the peak of the market so you have missed a lot of the recent drop in prices. The other thing to consider is interst rates, they are still within 1% of all time lows so you have an opportunity to buy a home with a loan that has a very good interst rate. If you wish to purse this further I would be glad to help you Alameda is a great town and a great place to live.

Thanks

Troy

Hello Ron,

Certainly prices continue to decline due to the reasons that you mentioned. In my opinion, it is a good time to buy if you plan to live in that home for five or more years. If it's for a shorter period, you need to be comfortable with the potential of a 10% or larger drop in the the re-sale value.

Bayfarm is a beautiful area and there are many beautiful homes available in your price range. Feel free to contact me if you'd like any assistance.

Best,
Mary

Rs

I reported that Alameda has seen, and probably will continue to see its share of short sales and foreclosures. In 2008, only 8% of all sales were foreclosures. To date in 2009, we've seen that jump to 18%.

Yes, even Bay Farm and Harbor Bay areas are feeling the pinch.

So far, we have 7 active listings that are foreclosures and short sales that are actively offered for sale.

In the meantime, we have 12 properties for sale in the price range you indicated in this area, ranging from a low of $739,900 to a high of $1,899,000, and at least a couple of them have bay views.

If you'd like to get more details about each one please contact me directly and I'll be glad to tell you as much as I can.

Pacita DImacali
510 205 2992
Pacita@PacitaRealtor.com