Are we there yet?

If you have kids or you can remember when you where a kid, you heard this before.

 When it comes to this real estate market that's the question on everyone's mind. Have we finally found the bottom of what has seemed like a bottomless pit. It's been a wild real estate ride for many areas in southern California as real estate prices have fallen just as fast as they rose. Back in 2005 some called the top as they where witness to prices rise 83% in some areas, in five short years. Now four years or so later we have seen the correction and the fall out. The contributing factors why such an event took place. Bad loans, cheap money and deregulation of lending practices all where factors. I just finished a good read by David Faber called “And Then the Roof Caved In". "How Wall Street's Greed and Stupidity Brought Capitalism to Its Knees".This book is based on Mr. Faber documentary “House of Cards” which investigates the origins of the global economic collapse. The origin being the US housing market and the so called AAA rated CDOs

So are we there yet? that's still is a very hard question to answer are we at the bottom of the real estate market. As we show property here in Chino Hills and the surrounding communities. Most of the homes for sale that are priced to sale have multiple offers. Most if not all are still short sales and foreclosures. Banks have multiple offers coming in so it's very completive out there, if you think the market is down and you as a buyer will walk in and get a deal. I would say you are half right. you can and should get solid purchase price on a home today. But it will not come without some stiff completion from investors and the like. Lending is still very tight, but not impossible. All loans are documented, the days of stated income and no money down financing, are long gone.

Here is a snap shot of California September Home Sales.

"Orange County’s 4.2 percent year-over-year increase in its resale house median last month was also the first for any month since August 2007, when that median rose 3.6 percent. San Diego County’s median price paid last month for resale houses rose 1.5 percent from a year ago, the first annual gain since August 2007, when it rose 0.9 percent. Ventura County’s September resale house median rose 2.2 percent - the first year-over-year increase since October 2006, when it climbed 1.3 percent".

 Data provide by DataQuick.

If you're ready to purchase a home today here are a few things you having going for you. Interest rate are still at an all time low. Inventory fell 10.8 percent in August to 3.62 million units available, down from a revised 4.06 million units in July. At the current sales pace, the homes on the market now represent an 8.5-month supply, down 8.6 percent from the 9.3-month supply of the previous month which is still high.

Still the question is out there is this the bottom? The answer, only time will tell if this is the bottom of a very shaky real estate market. I don't know if this is the bottom or not but it's looking better every day.