Open Houses April 28 2024

OPEN HOUSES THIS SUNDAY APRIL 28TH and I will be at 433 Park Blvd in Ukiah 11am to 1pm

Karena Jolley, Full-Time Realtor
RE/MAX Gold Selzer Realty & Associates
707-354-2999
license 01482063
website MendoHomes.com

 

Income Tax Rates through History!

 So I never thought about this until someone posted a comment on Facebook and I had to go look it up online.  Historic Income Tax Rates!   I know the taxes were imposed and repealed but in 1913 we started up income taxes and never looked back.  But I had not realized how many changes there were to the taxes through the years (makes sense, but I didn't know).  

Here's an article that has the chart:

https://www.wolterskluwer.com/en/expert-insights/whole-ball-of-tax-historical-income-tax-rates

Karena Jolley 

Full-Time Realtor at
RE/​M​AX Gold Se​lzer Realty & Associates
707 354 2999 cell
mendohomes.com
dre# 01482063

Austism Awareness month

 I want to bring more awareness to not only Autism but also Neurodivergent people in our world.  As I always tell Tristan, it doesn't make you any better or any worse than anyone else, just different!  And different is good, but sometimes people need to have a bit more understanding and patience.  Hey, we all need to try to do the best we can, right?  

And I find different articles about aspects of Neurodivergent people.  This particular one is health related. Here's an article about the concerns of toxic buildup in Neurodivergents-- but not all, since again everyone is different.  But sometimes the general genes and makeup of the body is not allowing it to process out some of the plastic toxins (and other) from the body, which can wind up causing other problems.  I found this an interesting read-- science is continuing to uncover so much about our body and find ways of helping people.  Already so different from when I was little!

https://www.sciencealert.com/common-plastic-additive-linked-to-autism-and-adhd-scientists-find

Karena Jolley

Full-Time Realtor at

RE/MAX Gold Se​lzer Realty & Associates
707 354 2999 cell
mendohomes.com
dre# 01482063

Standoff in Real Estate?

 I completely agree with this article covering the market standoff that is occurring right now.  With interest rates having gone up so much in such little time, the prices of homes would typically be falling by now-- but they are not much where we live in Northern California (Mendocino County).  The sellers are reluctant to reduce prices, especially when they do not need to sell.  And many are going to wait close to their desired price and try again in the spring.   This has left buyers with the tough decision-- pay a higher mortgage for now, work towards a buy-down to temporarily keep the payments lower, or wait and see what happens to the interest rates...

referring to this article: 

https://www.housingwire.com/articles/video-if-homebuyer-demand-is-so-weak-why-arent-home-prices-falling/

Karena Jolle​y, Full-Time Realtor at
RE/MAX Gold Selzer Realty & Associates
707 354 2999 cell
mendohomes.com
dre# 01482063

Post from 6/2/23

This was a post from June 2023, and as the company that our website that we have used for many years is closing business, I wanted to move some of our blog posts to Blogger, since this is our main one now! 

Kelsi Ryan and I just changed over to  Selzer Realty & Associates, and although the change has been a little exhausting, and I have a renewed sympathy for anyone moving, we are totally happy.  We are still Full-Time Realtors and still have offices in Ukiah and Willits (now one in Laytonville).  We now work for a company that is connected with RE/MAX, with all of its strong international presence and excellent marketing.  Selzer Realty & Associates RE/MAX Gold is community involved, and the business is structured on helping their agents as much as possible, so we can do a better job of helping our clients.  It's a positive concept!  I have been recently reading parts of the Don't Sweat the Small Stuff at Work book, and the idea of looking at not only yourself but your work environment for ways to improve and lessen stress and negativity is something that I am earnestly trying to implement.  And this change is a step forward for us in implementing those "good" habits.  

The Open sign will be out more at the Willits office at 390 S Main Street, so please look for it and stop by!

Karena Jolley, Full-Time Realtor at
RE/MAX Gold S​​elzer Realty & Associates
707 354 2999 cell
mendohomes.com
dre# 01482063

Interest rates April 2023

 Finally we are heading in a bit better direction on the interest rates, under the 6.5% range now.  Is that great?  Yes and no.  We have been slowly declining since it hit up and over 7% weeks ago, and finally we are heading for the 6.25% range and hopefully under 6% sooner than later.  However, last year it was in the 5% range, and that was a huge jump over February-March 2022.  So, we are still getting used to the change in rates one year later.  This is the new normal, here to stay-- but hopefully we'll be adjusting in the 5% range at least...

reference article https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/mortgage-rates-just-fell-again-but-the-news-gets-even-better/

Karena has been a full-time Realtor since 2005 providing extensive knowledge of homes and land in the inland Mendocino County and Western areas of Lake County with a consistently high production record of both listing and selling. Karena began working with Kelsi Ryan in 2013 and their teamwork was honored with the Realtor’s 2018 award for best team! Using our business and service backgrounds, our clients benefit from our communication, organization and marketing skills and are able to feel comfortable and informed every step of the way. With our years of experience in pre-listing preparation, negotiating skills, contract knowledge, we help you plan and achieve the best terms possible for your purchase or sale. In 2016, Karena’s son Tristan was born, making him the youngest member of the team, and he continues to help in his own way! We are looking forward to meeting you, and we shall be here for you long after the transaction is over.  View my listings at MendoHomes.com

Areas served:
Willits, Ukiah, Calpella, Talmage, Laytonville, Hopland, Potter Valley, Redwood Valley, Upper Lake, Lakeport, Kelseyville, Nice, Lucerne

Willits' Old Hospital

 The location of the old hospital is going through major changes, as the old building is being torn down and the Willits City is considering a rezoning of the land so that future uses can be considered.  The current zoning is Public Facility which severely limited the kinds of uses, so many potential buyers were discouraged.  With the removal of the building and rezoning, this property may become a "hot commodity" for those ready to move forward with a project!

reference article:

https://mendofever.com/2023/03/01/the-demolition-of-the-nearly-century-old-howard-hospital-marks-the-end-of-an-era-city-of-willits-considering-the-future-of-the-site/?amp=1

Karena Jolley, Full-Time Realtor at
Coldwell Bank​​er Mendo Realty
707 354 2999 cell
mendohomes.com
dre# 01482063

Karena has been a full-time Realtor since 2005 providing extensive knowledge of homes and land in the inland Mendocino County and Western areas of Lake County with a consistently high production record of both listing and selling. Karena began working with Kelsi Ryan in 2013 and their teamwork was honored with the Realtor’s 2018 award for best team! Using our business and service backgrounds, our clients benefit from our communication, organization and marketing skills and are able to feel comfortable and informed every step of the way. With our years of experience in pre-listing preparation, negotiating skills, contract knowledge, we help you plan and achieve the best terms possible for your purchase or sale. In 2016, Karena’s son Tristan was born, making him the youngest member of the team, and he continues to help in his own way! We are looking forward to meeting you, and we shall be here for you long after the transaction is over.  View my listings at MendoHomes.com

Sonoma County Real Estate market

 Our Mendocino County real estate market does look to the counties in the South, like Sonoma County, as that does have an affect on our activity and pricing here.  Sonoma County has been experiencing less sales (like Mendocino County) this spring and summer 2022, but has not seen the decrease in pricing as we have had here.  Instead, their "slowing" of the market means less buyers, less multiple offers and less properties selling for over asking price.  There is still a lot of demand, but what was taking 20 to 30 days to sell is now 60 to 90 days.  Will Sonoma County see price reductions in future?  Perhaps, or it may be that they will just see a "flattening" of prices.  Not sure yet.

https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/grim-benchmark-mortgage-rates-go-over-6-for-first-time-in-14-years/

Early July 2022 market summary

 

The market has cooled considerably in the last 6 months, and although the interest rates have stopped climbing for now (which has recently caused more buyers to seek qualification for mortgages), there are fewer buyers this year and many are taking longer to decide if they want to jump into the buying market.  Sellers are needing to brace themselves for the sale process to take much longer unless they cut their prices (and many would rather wait if they can sell for higher).  

Full article below:

https://www.car.org/marketdata/marketminute

July 04, 2022 – With mortgage rates steadily coming down after reaching a recent peak in mid-June, the market began to show some signs of stability as purchase mortgage applications remained unchanged from the prior week. Home sales remained depressed from the prior year, however, as economic uncertainty and higher borrowing costs continued to expand their role in homebuyers’ decision to purchase. With inflation remaining high and the economy expected to pull back, the market will normalize further in the second half of 2022 with softer sales and more moderate price growth.  

Mortgage applications increase as the rapid rise in rates takes a pause: According to Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), the weekly average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage as of June 30, 2022, came down to 5.70% from 5.81% in the week prior. The decline in mortgage rates in recent weeks boosted the mortgage application volume up for the week ending June 24 by 0.7% from the prior week. The weekly gain was due primarily to an increase in refinancing activity, as the Refinance Index ticked up 2% from the week before. Purchase applications, on the other hand, were essentially flat from the prior week and were 24% lower than the same week one year ago. Overall purchase activity continued to be weakened by elevated rates, higher homes prices, and growing economic uncertainty.

Housing sentiment dips again as the market shifts: Consumers were less positive about the state’s housing market conditions in June than they were in prior months. Results from the C.A.R.’s latest monthly sentiment survey show that 79% of the consumer respondents believe that the overall economic conditions in California will not improve in the next 12 months, while 85% believe that interest rates will not fall within a year. Only 14% of the respondents think it is a good time to buy a home, a slight increase from the record low reached in May, but still a sizable decline from last June’s 19%. While those who believe it is a good time to sell a home remains above pre-pandemic levels, the sharp monthly decline of seven percentage points from 68% in May pulls the index down to the lowest level in 16 months.   

Cooling consumer spending points to further economic slowdown: U.S. household spending slowed to a 0.2% advance in May, as Americans faced historically high inflation and elevated interest rates. This was the smallest monthly gain in 2022, and down from the revised 0.6% increase in April. Elevated and persistent price pressures have negatively impacted real disposable personal income and it is weighing on consumers' ability to spend. Inflation-adjusted income, in fact, declined by 0.1% in May, which is an indication that wage growth was not able to keep up with price increases. Real personal spending slipped 0.4% in May as a result, even as consumers continued to save less compared to pre-pandemic levels. For now, consumers may still have the ability to rely on their savings, but they may not be able to do so for too long.

Consumer confidence dips to 16-month low: The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index fell to 98.7 in June, a drop of 4.5 points from 103.2 in May, and was far below its reading from 128.9 in June 2021. The decline in confidence was mostly tied to consumers’ expectations on the short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions, which dropped 7.3 points to 66.4 – the lowest reading in more than 9 years. Consumers reported growing more concerned with coming conditions after looking at their finances, elevated gas prices and deteriorating labor market prospects. Intentions to buy cars, homes, and major appliances held relatively steady in May, but have cooled since the beginning of the year. Vacation plans also have softened as prices continue to rise.

Overall construction spending declines but residential remains solid: Total construction spending dipped 0.1% month-over-month in May, but still increased 9.7% from last year. Most of the gain was attributed to the residential side, which posted a 0.2% gain from April and was up 18.7% year-over-year. The rise in residential spending was primarily due to an increase in home improvement spending, which jumped 0.6% in May from a month ago. Higher interest rates and a slowdown in buyer demand, however, will moderate spending as builders scale back production going forward. The softening in single-family buying conditions will also likely bolster multifamily construction.

Housing/Property Permits

 Whether you have bought a property for the first time or have many times before, you may or may not be aware of the local Building Department and the files that they keep on properties.  

We find that most buyers or sellers do not know how many things really do require a permit.  A lot of sellers assumed repairs that they made did not require a permit, and therefore will not disclose-- not that they are necessarily trying to hide anything!  Changing a ceiling fan or water heater requires a permit.  Changing windows--even like for like-- requires a permit.  And on and on.  

It is always a good idea for a buyer to check the building department files to check and see what is there, what may be an issue, and what is not there.  Only check-- it is not good practice to turn in a seller (who is actively on the market) for a possible permit issue, but it is a very good idea to check the file before or during your inspection period when buying a property.  

Another misconception is that everything will be "grandfathered-in" and acceptable once the new buyer purchases.  Not so!  The new buyer is purchasing with all the possible issues and defects, with very little exception.  Some building departments will forgive older homes and work that was done before a certain year, but that depends on the city and county.  

Some homes look so standard that no one worries about checking (although it is always good to check) while others look odd or give that funny feeling...  and I have come across one or two with no permits at all!  It can happen...

-- Karena Jolley, Realtor at Coldwell Banker Mendo Realty

partners with Kelsi Ryan 

Mendohomes

Mendohomes.com

Mendohomes.com update from Karena Jolley

 We have several really great properties for sale right now, which can be seen at www.MendoHomes.com and range from lots and acreage land, land with improvements, homes on residential lots, upgraded homes, to homes on land.   

We saw our first bit of rain recently, and everyone that I know of is looking forward to more rain soon hopefully!  I don't see more rain in the forecast yet...

CA real estate market information September 2021

 According to the California Association of Realtors, the median price range in Mendocino County has changed from $485,000 in June 2020 to a price of $582,000 in June 2021 with a price change upwards of 34%.  However, we have seen a 35.6% decrease in sales overall compared to a year ago.

Supply and demand, once again.  A decrease in the number of homes being put onto the market and sold means less for buyers to choose from, so they have to fight and complete for the few homes that do come on for sale.  

However, this is not true for every price range, and there is a point to where a seller can push the price and not get the activity and offers that they want.   

Loans and Refinancing late summer 2021

 I have noticed that there are more hoops to jump through this year in order to purchase or refinance, especially if you are self-employed.  A bit annoying, but at least the interest rates are really good still!!

So, I suggest you listen carefully to your lender and follow their list of wants & needs, as they are just trying to do the best job they can of helping you to obtain your goals.  I have helped clients on many occasions with scanning or faxing their documentation, as our office equipment has great quality and certainly makes the job of scanning a huge stack manageable.  And if your lender says you're not quite ready to buy, make that to-do list and tackle it at a reasonable pace in order to achieve your goals of buying in the coming months to year!

Current listings 9/9/2021

 This will be a periodic post to cover a few of our current properties on the market!!

This link shows what we currently have: 

https://mendohomes.com/team-listings

We typically have a wide variety of properties on the market in the inland Mendocino County and Western Lake County, from residential homes to land and ranches.  We have experience with investment properties and 1031 tax exchanges, too.  Feel free to reach out to us anytime and we will get back to you as soon as we can!

Open Houses again

Here we go again! Open Houses are finally allowed again, with a few extra steps.  Do they work? Yes and no.  Downtown they may have more effectiveness to bring in hesitant buyers who have been window shopping but have not wanted to start working with an agent. However,  there will always be the perennial open-house viewers who are not buyers but just wanting to look. Rural homes are the trickiest, since that is asking the buyer to travel a ways just to look at a home! I have done them in Brooktrails in the past, and if I got just one or two real buyers to come look, it was a success!

We were lucky with our 1st open house for 2021 to have 7 different groups/peoples come through,  considering the home was a few minutes out of town. 

I will update as I do more open houses in 2021!

Mortgage Applications

Mortgage applications dropped by the end of May 2021, so we shall see what impact this means soon.  Here is the article I was reading: https://www.housingwire.com/articles/fewer-people-are-submitting-mortgage-applications/

Basically,  less buyers were wanting to jump into the market. Is it the high prices? Cost of construction and materials? Or because many were vacationing for the 1st time in a long, long time?  I do know several buyers who backed off and stopped looking for now due to rising prices and also being beaten out on one home after another.  But I also see a lot of people enjoying vacations right now, too.

Only time will tell...

Manufactured Homes

 I personally like manufactured homes, especially the younger models.  I do understand that being factory built, they typically come with less expensive materials and finishes unless upgrades are requested, but on the other side, they are still cheaper than stick-built construction and one can still customize the size and configuration nicely!  

One note of consideration that I have been finding recently-- there are loans to purchase manufactured homes, definitely.  However, I do have a client who wanted to refinance his rental manufactured home and apparently had to go with a portfolio loan (in-house loan) which has a bit higher interest rate.  I have also seen recently where there was a larger selection of loans available to purchase a property with both a manufactured home and stick-built home on the same property.  

Financing Varieties

When someone asks me what types of financing are available, I usually start with the most typical and work my way from there.  Such as the Conventional, FHA, VA and sometimes USDA loans.  But often we get to talking about other aspects of real estate and I don't finish that long list-- so I wanted to highlight a couple of options that can be forgotten.  

One is the manufactured financing, which is alive and well.  Yes, after the market crashed years ago, trying to find manufactured financing was difficult to impossible.  But as the years went by, more and more products became available again.  Rick Costa of Bay Equity Home Loans has supplied me with a flyer of information regarding manufactured home loans which includes Conventional, FHA, and VA loans...

 .  

 For those loans with low down payments, I usually think of the 5% Conventional and 3.5% FHA loan, but Rick also showed me they have a 3% down payment loan program to those who qualify that includes a Down Payment Assistance (grant) to help those qualified to purchase.  

So many types of loan products are out there!  This is one of many, many reasons why a potential buyer should find a lender they are comfortable with (or ask the real estate agent they are working with for suggestions and begin by interviewing them).  If you are not comfortable with the person, then interview another lender, by all means.  This will be a long road and I want to know you are comfortable with who you are working with along the way!

You can reach me at www.MendoHomes.com for more information.  MendoRealEstate@gmail.com and 707-354-2999 (cell).  Realtor Karena Jolley with Coldwell Banker Mendo Realty Inc. license 01482063.  If you are currently working with an agent please do not consider this a solicitation. 

When Dropping Interest Rates Is Not Always Good...

In reading a recent article on interest rates, it was an interesting point that they are making regarding the expected drop in mortgage rates.  To buyers, a drop in mortgage rates is great because their payment drops or buying power increases.  So as investors are running to the bond markets and away from the volatile stock markets, the mortgage rate Is apparently going to drop and please the buyers—but maybe not all buyers!  This is because the banks lending may not see the jumbo loans as attractive at lower rates than previously, and may not offer as many of the larger loans, choosing to concentrate on the more conforming government loans.  So anyone looking to purchase in the higher price ranges may find it much harder to get those jumbo loans as rates drop… in Mendocino County the conforming limit is $417,000 so anything above becomes a jumbo loan.  In Sonoma County the limit is $554,300.  If a buyer is looking for a large home or home on land, these limits can be reached and exceeded very quickly!  So having the interest rate drop is not always the best thing to happen…

(the article I was reading can be located at: http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2016/02/22/mortgage-rates-may-be-headed-for-record-low?om_rid=AAC4q5&om_mid=_BWy2jFB9K9eisH&om_ntype=RMODaily)

Karena talks to First Time Homebuyers Part Two

Hello, this is Karena Jolley with Coldwell Banker Mendo Realty Inc.  Today we’re picking up where I left off in the first video to first time homebuyers.  Now we’re ready to start looking at homes in the price range that you have been qualified for.  Some buyers are looking for a fixer so they can work and put equity into the home. Depending on the type of loan, we may need to look for more of a cosmetic fixer because loans such as FHA, VA and USDA will be much pickier about property condition.  With VA loans, the lender will want to see a very clean home with a cleared Pest and Fungus report.  With FHA and USDA loans, the home must have all appliances functioning and be clean enough that the appraiser does not take note of rotten boards, holes in the walls or floor, any structural or mildew issues, etc.  So, a home with a rotten deck, hole in the roof, obvious signs of wood rot, etc will raise too many issues and prevent the loan from being approved.  However, if the home simply has dated flooring, lighting, and worn features, then it could very well be fine for purchase! 

At every home we will do our best to point out obvious issues that we notice when we show you properties—we are not experts or inspectors and cannot find all issues, but when a condition pops out at us are glad to point it, give our thoughts on it and suggest an inspector that could check it out. 

So, when we are looking at homes, you will be seeing if you like the home, floorplan, amenities, location, etc while we look and see if there is anything we want to advise you on.  When we move forward in making an offer on a house, it’s best to guess what repairs and maintenance the home needs and offer a comfortable price taking this into account.  If an offer is accepted and inspections reveal more than what we were guessing, then that is where renegotiating on price or asking the seller to do repairs comes in to play.

Next up will be a discussion of the ins and outs of the offer process!