Eugene Oregon Real Estate Blog by Craig Tomlinson

Foreclosed properties selling for less

craigtomlinson — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 23:20:55 +0000

Though the present real estate market may look fairly abysmal, there are still some great deals out there for buyers. On average foreclosed properties sold for 34% less, with short sales averaging around 15% less. While these are national trends, they still demonstrate how much houses are discounted once they have been foreclosed upon. While many of these properties are discounted because they are in bad shape, it is still possible to find heavily discounted homes that are in great condition. There is no shortage of supply either, in Lane County 30% of all sales were foreclosures, and national foreclosure rates have jumped 2,500% in the past four years.

Planned Mental hospital faces possible cuts

craigtomlinson — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:45:58 +0000

There may be trouble for a new mental health facility planned in Junction City. The hospital, set to replace the Oregon State Hospital along with another hospital in Salem in fall 2013, has been put into question due to budget shortfalls. While the hospital would provide around 1,000 new jobs to the Junction City area, which would greatly help the local economy, the operating costs are estimated at around $214 million per biennium, a massive amount of money during a recession. While the facility still has many powerful supporters, including Governor Kulongosky and Senate President Courtney, detractors are worried that the increased operating cost from the new hospital will drain money from Oregon’s community based system of mental health care.

The doubts that have been cast on the facility’s construction comes at a bad time for Junction City’s local economy. In early 2009 Junction City’s booming RV industry took a dive, with several RV makers in Junction City being forced to either cease production temporarily, lay off large amounts of staff or shut down permanently. With many RV manufacturers being forced to choose the third option, the Junction City economy has been needing a large source of jobs that the mental hospital could provide. For house prices to recover in Junction City, the area needs more jobs, in my opinion.

Foreclosures remain high in lane county

craigtomlinson — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 23:11:01 +0000

According to a new study, foreclosure and short sale’s remain high in Lane County. Nearly a third of all recent home sales in Lane County were either short sales or foreclosures. The majority of these foreclosures are occurring because of loss of income, which has equally affected both the rich and poor. Because houses that are foreclosed upon or short sold sell for about 15% less than other houses, the entire market has become depressed. The situation here is similar to that of the rest of the nation, as a whole, with around 31% of sales in the US being foreclosed or short sold.

Springfield housing development back on track

craigtomlinson — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 21:51:45 +0000

This housing development that I wrote about earlier in the year is finally in the process of being completed. Despite being repossessed, developer Hayden Homes is on track to build 100 home sites, with the first one, the model home, being completed around July 17th. The first phase of the development, consisting of about 10 homes, will be completed in around August or September. Reservations are being taken for the 10 initial homes, with an opening price of around 140K. There are seven home plans, ranging in size from 1,041 square feet for a 2 bed, 1 bath to 2,192 square feet for a four bed, 2.5 bath home.

New homes getting smaller

craigtomlinson — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:13:42 +0000

New homes are starting to get smaller for the first time in nearly three decades. The average size of new single-family homes dropped from 2,521 square feet in 2007, hit a plateau in 2008 and began falling in 2009. The average home now has fewer beds and bathrooms as well. This decline of home size has not been solely caused by the crash in the housing market, and instead has decreased due to other factors, such as an increased share of first-time home buyers and a desire to lower energy costs.

Home loan interest rates drop again

craigtomlinson — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 21:34:49 +0000

Good news for those looking to refinance, the national average for interest on 30-year fixed loans has sunk to just 4.69 percent. These are the lowest interest rates that have been seen on home loans for around 50 years. While these rates are great for home buyers or those looking to refinance, they could be worse for those trying to save through savings accounts and CDs, as interest rates on these have fallen as well. In all, around 291,000 homeowners have refinanced as of March.

may foreclosures

craigtomlinson — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:28:55 +0000

The foreclosure numbers are out for May, and it appears that more and more banks are seizing homes. Nationwide, lenders took back 93,777 properties, while foreclosure filings fell by 3% since April. Oddly enough, this recent wave of seized houses actually has to do with the market becoming more stable. Lenders have been fairly lax in repossessing homes for the past few months while they tried to keep up with the vast number of people who were forced to default when the housing bubble burst. Because of the recent stabilization of the market, lenders are starting to catch back up and repossess assets again. Oregon’s foreclosure rate is currently one of the worse in the nation, ranked as having the 16th most foreclosures in the nation.

Majority of HAMP modified loans fail

craigtomlinson — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 21:49:48 +0000

As it turns out, most borrowers who have modified their mortgages through the government sponsored Home Affordable Modification Program are likely to default. In fact, somewhere between 65% and 75% will default within the first year. Many borrowers find modifying their mortgage did little to solve their other debt problems, and still end up in either foreclosure or short sale. This comes as little surprise, as borrowers who have modified their loans spend, on average, 64% of their monthly income paying off debt. Should any small emergency arise they are often unable to pay the monthly minimums on their debts. It would be nice if there were a better plan.

Home loan fraud

craigtomlinson — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:59:33 +0000

Why are home loans so hard to get now? This is a question that has undoubtedly been on every homebuyers mind since the recession began. Well, as it turns out, the economy is not the sole reason for the banks recent stinginess. Recently a fraud probe in Oregon charged 39 people with loan fraud, including lending professionals, real estate agents and others affiliated with the real estate industry. Many of these cases were committed by falsely inflating a propertys selling price, which contributed to the housing bubble. While many of those committing loan fraud have been put out of business by the latest crackdown, fraudsters still remain. Rescue fraud has become increasingly popular; victims are those in danger of foreclosure and unscrupulous types are preying on them.

Buying a home after foreclosure

craigtomlinson — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 21:21:35 +0000

Due to the rush of foreclosures lately many are wondering what their options are for buying a home after foreclosure. While foreclosure is damaging to your credit, the reasons behind your foreclosure may affect how quickly you can buy your next home. Lenders look at things other than credit score when considering you for a home loan, and if they fail to see why you were foreclosed upon, they might assume you are what is known as a “walk away.”

“Walk aways” are what the loan industry calls those who have purposefully defaulted on their mortgage when they could still afford to pay it. This is done typically because the amount owed on a home is greater than the price; many believe they can simply walk away from the mortgage, allow the bank to reposes the house, build up their credit again and buy a new home. Be wary, though, as if lenders suspect that you have done this they will be hesitant to allow you to borrow. What is typically a 2 to 5 year waiting period for buying a new home could be increased to 7 years or more.