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Bexar County Appraisal District releases new appraisals
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Posted By - Wayne Marinik - 04/30/2012
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If you haven't checked your mail yet, be prepared. Bexar County Appraisal mailed out their 2012 Proposed Valuations. In most cases, the appraised values have not increased but there are exceptions.
A quick sampling of properties we manage plus homes that I own revealed an interesting trend. For homes that were valued at around $200,000 or under, those values remained constant. There was little movement. If the home had a previous value of $100,000 or less, we actually saw values reduced. These reductions have not been extreme, generally between $4,000-6,000 compared to 2011 values.
The multfamily properties we manage also faired well. In the properties we surveyed, their values remained the same as 2011. This was for properties valued from $300,000 to $400,000.
Where we noticed increases however for single family homes whose previous value for 2011 was $250,000 or more. These homes saw increases from $5,000 to $20,000 in appraised value. The concentration of these homes were Northwest San Antonio and North Central San Antonio around and outside Loop 1604.
Your currently have through May 31, 2012 to file a protest of your tax appraisal. To help determine if that will help you same money, obtain a current market analysis from a Realtor. Using Zillow or Trulia will not garner you accurate results. Those sites only use Public Data such as Deed and Deed of Trust recordings, thus sometime the values are either over or under actual sales prices.
Good luck and should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Housing Numbers improve in San Antonio
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Posted - 04/23/2012
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As we continue to move through 2012 we are seeing some interesting trends. Through the first quarter of 2012, housing prices have increased on average by 2% compared to the same quarter last year. The average sales price of a home in Bexar County was $185,561.
This positive trend underlies the fact that Bexar County did not take wide swings in housing prices in 2006-2008. While there are still a number of foreclosures and short sales throughout the area, banks are not as aggressive in their sales pricing and are working to ensure that market pricing remains consistent.
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Recent FHA Changes for Loan Approval
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Posted - 04/16/2012
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While the housing market continues to stabilize, FHA has released an update on new conditions that may have an effect on that stabilization. The Federal Housing Administration has now stated it will not provide loan approval for applicants that have in excess of $1,000 in medical collections and that there is no activity on the account.
Prior to obtaining loan approval, if you have over $1,000 in medical collections, you will either have to pay off the balance or have arranged a payment plan with the collections company and be able to provide a payment history of no less than 6 months.
It remains to be seen how this additional hurdle will impact the housing market. A concern by some in the industry is that a collection from a medical company can appear at any time with little or no notice to the applicant. In the event that your insurance carrier opts not to cover all or partial amounts of a simple day procedure, you may findyourself with an unknown collection account attached to your credit report. We have seen where notices were forwarded to old addresses or not sent at all.
With interest rates at all time lows and the market providing some bargains, it is again the financing issues that are constricting the ability of borrowers to take advantage of owning a home. We will have to wait and see how this now impacts that progress.
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Housing Improvement for San Antonio
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Posted By - Wayne Marinik - 04/09/2012
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While the national Real Estate Market remains in flux, San Antonio is starting to post some reassuring numbers. While we have never had the wild swings of the East and West Coast markets, we did take a few lumps over the last few years.
Numbers released from the San Antonio Board of Realtors reflect an increase in the average sales price compared to the sale time last year plus more home sales. As of the end of February, home prices on Average were $183,955. This is a 3% increase of the same time last year.
It was reported that there were 1243 residential home sales for the month of February as well. This was all single family inventory and represents a 12% increase over the same time last year.
With this all said, we are still seeing foreclosures and short sales have a negative impact on our market. A big improvement has come from the lenders themselves and the loan servicers. We are no longer seeing foreclosures come to the market priced well below market. While there are bargains out there, banks are reigning in deeply discounted foreclosures in order to stabilize the market.
Case in point would be a home worth $224,900 in good shape in a decent market. We were seeing these homes sometimes come to market at $175,000 and all that would be needed might be carpet and paint.
Now, that same home more likely will come to market at a list price of $200,000 or better. It will still be a good deal but will not have the tremendous negative ompact of $175,000.
Overall, the San Antonio Housing market continues to grow through our diversified market strength but also our very affordable housing opportunities.
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Steady stream of foreclsoures??
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Posted By - Wayne Marinik - 10/31/2011
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I was out checking on one of our listings over the weekend when I noticed a home across the street that seemed abandoned. I am familiar with the neighborhood and knew that the home was worth $350,000 to $375,000. While I was inspecting our listing, a vehicle pulled up and a a gentleman got out and started to inspect the property that looked abandoned. He then came across the street and visited with me to find otu if I knew the owners. I informed him that I did not and asked why he was looking for them.
Turns out he is with a property services company that worked with lenders when homeowners are in default or a foreclosure has occurred. He represented Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Chase. In speaking with him, he let me know his company has 2000 pending orders in parts of Bexar County to contact and evaluate properties that are already foreclosed. In some cases he had been calling on the same house 2 years after foreclosure.
I thought about that for a while and realized what may be happening. In the case of the home across the street, in a normal market, it would have a value of around $350,000. Even Bexar County Appraisal had this home appraised at $341,000. But with it in it's current condition and with few buyers, the bank may sell this home at a price of $300,000 to $280,000. A quick CMA of the neighborhood revealed that three other bank foreclosures of similar size and style had sold at this price point, well under normal market.
What it appears that many banks are doing are trying to steadily release inventory but not all at once. They realize that if they flood the market, prices could drop but also, by holding that asset on their books and not selling it, they are recognizing the asset at a value of maybe $340,000-350,000. That bolsters the banks asset balances versus selling the home at a loss.
So if you are seeing a home in your neighborhood that has been foreclosed, be patient. In most cases the banks are just trying to time the market and not take as large a loss. The San Antonio market remains strong, prices are stable and interest rates low. Even with the foreclosures, it remains a favorable time to buy.
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Proposition 1 Support
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Posted By - Wayne Marinik - 10/17/2011
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As Election Time rolls around, the Texas Association of Realtors has released it's lists of constitutional amendments that the organization supports. Of the the 10 coming onto the ballot, the Texas Association of Realtors has come out in favor of Proposition 1,2 and 8.
The most suprising one was Proposition 1. It was suprising because most people would have assumed that this was already law. By state law, Texas veterans who are 100% or totally disabled receive a property tax exemption. If passed, this proposition would extend that exemption to the veteran's surviving spouse. To receive the extension of benefit, the property must have been the residence homestead of the surviving spouse when the qualifying veteran died. It would remain in effect as long as the surviving spouse does not remarry and the property remains the residence homestead of the surviving spouse.
How it will appear on the ballot
The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a 100 percent or totally disabled veteran.
The bottom line
Vote Yes on Prop 1. By easing the financial burden of remaining in the home, Proposition 1 not only honors the memory of the veteran, but the spouse, who also sacrificed for our great country.
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Housing Tax Credit through April 30, 2010
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Posted - 01/20/2010
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Few people realize but the definition of a first time home buyer is someone that has NOT owned their primary residence for the past three years. That opens up the potential for many in San Antonio to take advantage of the Tax Credit for up to $8,000!
A great example would be someone in the military that may have purchased a home some time ago, lived in the home and then has been renting it out the past three years. In the interim, the homeowner has actually been renting a place for their primary residence. Now that they have been stationed to San Antonio, they have a great opportunity.
With today's low interest rates, the ability to roll your closing costs into the loan while getting a great deal on a home, this is a great time to buy!
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2010 Housing Forecast
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Posted - 01/10/2010
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2010 Holds many things in store and from a real estate perspective, things appear to be positioned for a strong year in San Antonio. With the help of consistently low interest rates, an affordable housing market sprinkled with some tremendous bargains and the extended and expanded tax credit, Realtors expect continued steady sales the first half of 2010.
During that time, Realtors anticipate that most foreclosures will be absorbed back into the market range of $200,000 or less. We are expecting to see the next round of foreclosures to hit the market segment mostly at $200,000 or more. This is due in part to the final part of the recession affecting higher wage earning households.
Even as the Fed begins to increase rates, mortgage loan rates are expected to stay below 6% for owner occuppied properties while investors can expect to have rates at 7% or better with 20% down and multiple discount points.
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Safety in San Antonio
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Posted - 09/22/2009
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With difficult economic times unfortunately, there comes another economic impact-higher crime. I was recently the victim of a vehicle burglary in my own neighborhood. While the items stolen were able to be replaced, the feeling of being secure in my own home was more difficult to re-establish.
In speaking with the officers who responded to my home, this type of burglary has become more common and has several objectives. The first is to simple take items of value of from the interior of the vehicle. This seems somewhat straight forward. The second is actually to steal the vehicle. The third is the most troublesome. In some cases, vehicles are broken into and nothing is stolen except the garage door remote. The reason behind this is to plan a home invasion during the day when you are away.
It is possible to combat this crime though with some easy planning. First, always lock your doors on you car, even at home. Thieves love unlocked cars. Next, remove all of your valuables, including your GPS at the end of the day. When thieves look through vehicles prior to break in, they are looking for laptop cases, cameras, GPS, portable DVD players, etc.,. If those items are not in the car, then are you are not much of a target because there is nothing of value.
I hope this information helps you to avoid the frustration of dealing with a vehicle break in. Not only is it a waste in dollars for you, but also a waste in time and effort. Good Luck!
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New July MLS Stats
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Posted - 1 day ago
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While the San Antonio market has never shown the flash of high market gains, it has always remained consistent. Now, based on July MLS Year to date stats, there may be reason to celebrate, although in cautious style. Year to day, home sales through July indicate a 2% increase in the median sales price up to $158,300, compared to $155,200 a year ago. Also, Realtors have sold 1980 homes year to date compared with 1823 just a year ago. That's a 9% increase in sales
These are year to date numbers. If you venture to look at July 2009 versus July 2008, you will actually see that our average sales price has dropped by 1% from $188,090 to $186,477. Homes on average are taking 95 days to sell. A year ago it was 84.
Overall, our market still remains consistent. A reason for the increase in sales numbers can be attributed to a couple of factors. One, the $8,000 Tax Credit has helped motivate first time buyers and Second, people still need to buy homes and there are some great deals out there, either through builders, bank owned properties or just plain old motivated sellers.
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Beware of the Short Sale
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Posted - 1 day ago
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Today as I searched through over 11,000 listings in the MLS, I found only 167 homes that were actively being marketing as Short Sales. What a shuprising number! That means that 98% of the hoems out there available are able to sell their homes for more than they owe and in many cases more than what they paid just a few years ago.
What I am concerned about are the listings we see being marketed as Short Sales that also promise huge returns for the buyer. Keep in mind, the San Antonio market has stayed level or appreciated somewhat in the last 24 months unlike most other markets. Banks when looking at our market understand that homes don't have to be given away to sell. Actually, we are seeing the REO properties fair well in price when a Realtor prices them according to market.
Be cautious when pursuing a Short Sale and make sure that the Realtor representing you have completed additional courses in order to better represent you.
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Watch out--MORE TAXES Could be on the Way!
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Posted By - Wayne Marinik - 1 day ago
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San Antonio area lawmakers have introduced ”sales price disclosure” legislation they claim will lead to equitable and fair property taxes. Don’t believe it.
State Rep. Michael Villarreal’s House Bill 133 and Sen. Jeff Wentworth’s Senate Bill 444 are short-sighted and bad for Texas homeowners. Bexar County Chief Appraiser Michael Amezquita and the San Antonio Express-News have also advocated for mandatory sales price disclosure. But it won't solve our problems. In fact, it would make things worse.
Sales price disclosure violates private property rights and, as proven in other states, does not lead to fairness in taxation. It does, however, lead to new taxes for property owners. Three-quarters of states that have real estate transfer taxes started with sales price disclosure. One is typically precursor to the other. Skeptical? Read this 50-state analysis from the National Council of State Legislatures and the Federation of Tax Administrators.
Several real estate transfer tax bills, which are essentially new sales taxes on real estate, are moving through the Texas Legislature right now. We oppose these measures because they represent new property taxes that will further burden Bexar County’s homeowners. There are better ideas.
The National Association of REALTORS® commissioned a study to analyze the effects of a transfer tax on real estate. The report assumed a tax rate of 0.5% (one-half percent) and a $125,000 purchase price. Based on these assumptions, the cost of buying a home would increase by about $600, and home sales would decline by almost 3%. One proposal, however, would've allowed the county to set the tax rate, so homebuyers could see a larger cost increase and sales could decline more than 3%. Additionally, the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University concluded that the creation of a transfer tax on real estate may create more problems than it solves, costing the state $955 million in lost economic activity with 11,575 jobs eliminated.
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