Home Sales in Southern Cal rise 22% in March…

The numbers are in for the month of April and sales in Southern California are up 22% over March. According to an article in CNN Money, buyers have come off the sidelines and started snapping up foreclosures and bargain properties. While our local numbers aren’t quite at the level seen in Southern California, Santa Barbara has also witnessed a rise in pending listings in the lower end.

Here is the url of the full article:

money.cnn.com/2008/05/19/real_estate/california_sales.ap/index.htm

Hiked Inspiration Point this morning…

My friend Lori Lewis and I tried to beat the heat this morning on a hike up Inspiration Point, but didn’t quite pull it off: It was already 80 degrees as we came back down at around 9:00am!! Looks like another Hot Santa Barbara day. I guess it beats the fog.

Waiting to Sell for More may Cost you a Bundle!

Many people ask me if they should sell their home now, or wait a few months or a few years for the market to recover. During uncertain times, people tend to adopt a “let’s wait and see” approach – after all, it’s human nature. Unfortunately, this instinct doesn’t serve most homeowners, who should really be asking themselves the more difficult question: What will I NET if I sell my house now versus later?
The answer to this question is not simple. It requires an analysis of your holding costs, lost opportunity costs, sale costs, and, importantly, the tax you will pay on any profit that is earned from the sale of your home. This last piece, TAXES, is critical since most experts agree that the long term capital gains tax rate will likely be increased by Congress in the not-too-distant future. [Read more]