I had fun making the Video Tour for 1890 Orchard Rd. in Hollister, CA. Why not take a few minutes to watch it? As you do you will notice 3 things: One, this fresh 3 bd. 2 bth. home is nicely appointed and quite comfortable: Two, it sits on a peaceful, flat 5 acre parcel and is all decked out for your horses; and Three, this home is only a 1/4 mile from the Santa Clara County line so it is perfectly located for a comfortable commute, shopping at the Gilroy Outlets, hitting the beach or walking along famed Cannery Row. 15 minutes South and you are in Hollister. Another 30 min. and you arrive at the Pinnacles National Monument and, in 40 min. to the East you are on Hwy. 5 heading for Yosemite or Disneyland. Give me a call for your own tour of this nice property. I promise – you will be impressed.
Hollister’s housing is HOT! Last month (5/09) saw 27 more Closings than 5/08′s 33. That is an increase of 81.8%! Each month this year our number of Closings has leaped ahead of ’08′s. To date there has been a 151% increase in Closed Sales! In fact, try to buy a home in Hollister now. “Multiple Offers” is once again a standard phrase reported to buyers by their agents.
Contributing to this hot market: New Listings of homes for sale in Hollister are down 27.9% so far this year over last year. Last month alone we saw a drop in New Listings of 29.5% over 5/08.
The Gilroy housing market is experiencing a similar recovery with a 128.9% increase in closings and a 32.7% decrease in New Listings.
Make sure your Realtor knows all the current methods in getting an offer accepted. You are going to need that if you want to buy a home here in Hollister.
If you have thought about buying a home in Gilroy, it’s time to act! May’s Closed Sales were up 75.8% over 5/08! This is the 5th straight month of increased Closings over the same period last year. Year-to-date Gilroy Closings are up a whopping 128.9% over the first 5 months in ’08!
The supply of homes listed for sale dropped 75.8% in May and was the 5th consecitive month this year where New Listings dropped. So far this year our Gilroy New Listings are down 32.7% from last year.
Similarly, Morgan Hill’s Closed Sales are up 59.4% and the number of New Listings is down 23.5% from 2008.
While the price levels and home loan interest rates are still low NOW is the time to come join us in the “Garlic Capital of the World” and buy your own home.
Have you noticed Morgan Hill’s housing activity? Wow! Recovery is well underway in our quaint town. In May there were 73.6% more Closings than in May ’08. This is the 5th straight month this year where our Closings have increased over last year’s figures. To date, Closings have increased nearly 60% (59.4%)!
On the other hand New Listings of Morgan Hill homes for sale were down for the 5th straight month. The number of May’s New Listings were down 55.4% vs. 5/08 and year-to-date the drop totals 23.5% over the same period last year!
In nearby Gilroy the same housing trends are happening! Gilroy’s number of Closed Sales is up 128% from 2008! 128%! Wow! Our New Listings were lower by 27.9%.
The affects of ‘Supply and Demand‘ are being felt here in Morgan Hill and Gilroy. While the interest rates are still wonderfully low I wouldn’t wait to buy.
I’m surprised how few Veterans know that their VA Home Loan Benefits can apply toward the purchase of a duplex. In fact, Veterans can also use their ‘VA’ to buy a triplex or fourplex.
I think part of the confusion comes from the blurry lines between a CalVET and Veterans Administration (VA) home loan. CalVET home loans are for those vets who enlisted while a California resident and are subject to Californians passing bonds to fund them. VA Loans are national loans guaranteed by the Veterans Administration. Unlike CalVET loans Veterans using their VA benefits can use their entitlement over and over again. VA loans do not expire 25 years after discharge, as CalVET loans do. VA loans are available to Veterans for their entire life. And, more to the topic of multiple units, Veterans can use their VA to buy a multiple family residence.
Some important points:
- Owner occupancy is a standard requirement for VA home loans, including multiple family units.
- The maximum, no down payment VA loan is currently $417,000.
- The maximum VA loan amount now is slightly over $1 million. On those sales prices over $417,000 the vet is required to put down 25% of the difference. For example, a sales price of $700,000 would require $70,750 down ($700,000 – $417,000 = $283,000 x 25%).
- You may use 75% of the other unit’s rental income to help qualify for the VA loan.
With today’s low interest rates and lower sales prices now would be an outstanding time for Veterans to buy a home, duplex, triplex, or fourplex. And…I just happen to know an excellant, VA Direct Lender. After all, it’s not only what you know but also, who you know.
A friend was in the process of buying his parents home when he asked me if there were any tax or insurance benefits resulting from this type of sale. I startled him when I blurted out a quick ,”YES!”
Thanks to a little-known section of the California Constitution (Sec. 2 of Article X111) or, more commonly referred to as “Prop. 58″ the sale or transfer of a principal residence between parents and children is NOT subject to reassessment. Translation: My friend could purchase his parents home and continue their low property taxes as his own. The savings was huge! With a sales price of $480,000 the taxes would have been $6,002/yr. but employing Prop. 58 the parents taxes: $1,876 became their son’s property taxes. In this case that is a whopping $4,126/yr. savings!
Not only did my friend experience a monthly savings of $344 in property tax but he more easily qualified for his home loan. He needed $905 LESS income to qualify because his Prin., Int., TAXES, & Ins. was so much lower.
There is a similar opportunity when grandparents are selling to grandchildren (Prop. 193).
Of course there are conditions but they are not difficult to satisfy.
So here is an opportunity to keep the good ole home in the family and bucks in the kid’s pocket.
