Foreclosure list prices in the Santa Cruz area of California are still down, compared to prices 12 months ago.
In May this year, the median price for single-family houses in California’s Santa Cruz County has not moved from its $425,000 level, but the price was still 31 percent down from the median home price in May 2008.
Out of every ten houses sold in May, six were sold for less than $500,000 and four were sold for over $1 million. According to sellers in the area, the 60-40 percent share has not changed since the first month of the year.
Sellers expected more sales in May and June, the months when more people typically make their home purchases or move-ups. Although home sales increased in May to 135 units compared to the 12-year low of 125 units of home sales in May 2008, home selling activity in May was still among the slowest in eight years.
A realtor in the Santa Cruz area said more and more short sales are being completed, especially in Watsonville, as homeowners try their best to prevent their homes from getting added to foreclosure list inventories.
The realtor said he and his business partner has completed 14 short sales in nine months in Santa Cruz. One was a four-bedroom house in Watsonville, which was bought by the owner for $570,000 in 2004. In May, the owner decided to sell it for $425,000 to prevent his credit from getting marked with a foreclosure list action.
Agents advise buyers and sellers to be persistent in pursuing short sales. He said negotiations fall through a lot of times before they result into a completed short sale.
Typically, the agents said, mortgage lenders are more receptive to short sale proposals if the homeowner has only one mortgage and no secondary mortgage.
In Watsonville, another realtor said, many bank owned foreclosure list properties are being sold. He mentioned a foreclosed property priced at $210,000 which he is now selling at $199,000.
Investors in the area have been looking at homes priced in the $450,000 range. In May, most of the lower-priced home sales were sold for lower than $480,000. The cheapest unit sold was a large Victorian house which was sold for $365,000.
In May last year, single-family houses in foreclosure list inventories were being sold at around $610,000. This May, they were being sold at around $425,000.
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