To those of you not familiar with the San Clemente real estate market, there are many historical sites that the city tries and preserves and the old San Clemente Casino is one of them.  According to this article on the San Clemente Times website, A new proposed plan by developer Steve Delson, who owns the property in the area of North Beach, has revised his plan to preserve the historic dance hall structure and the “patio of the stars.”  His plan is to build a mixed use residential and commercial property that will include four new San Clemente condos and a high-end restaurant that will be dinner-focused and seat 150 people.  The vice president of the San Clemente Historical society does not approve of the plan and it will now move to be reviewed by the Design Committee, the Planning Commission, and then returned back to City Council for a vote.  For more information, please visit: SanClemente.org

For more information on San Clemente homes and condos for sale, including in the Talega real estate market, please do not hesitate to explore the various sections of our website and/or contact us!

According to this article on CNN, our nation’s homes are the most affordable in over two decades.  As measured by the Housing Opportunity Index, the price declines coupled with low interest rates are bringing more buyers back into the market as they can actually afford to buy now.  On a local level, this has been the case in the San Clemente real estate market, including Talega real estate, where more homes and condos have sold in each month of 2009 as compared to 2008 as consumer confidence has been coming back into the marketplace with homes becoming more affordable.

For more information on the affordability of San Clemente homes and condos for sale, please contact us.

The average price per square foot for San Clemente real estate sold was $340 in April, representing a 7.6% increase from March.  Early this year, the average price per square foot hit approximately $320.  For the month of April, the average price per square foot for a San Clemente home sold was $368, representing an 11% increase from March.  On the other hand, San Clemente condos sold for an average of $319 per square foot in April, an increase of 1.3% from March.  As we normalize these numbers with more sales throughout the year, it appears that the average price per square foot for San Clemente real estate sold has held steady or slightly increased in 2009. 

This positive news, along with the great data on decreased inventory compared to the same period of 2008 due to fewer listings on the market and increased sales, continues to illustrate that this market may have finally hit bottom.  We will continue to provide monthly updates on the average price per square for San Clemente real estate so you can be kept up to date on whether we have finally hit the bottom.

 For more information, please do not hestitate to contact us for a free consultation.

For our San Clemente real estate and Talega real estate buyers and sellers wanting to see an up to date graph on how the San Clemente home and condo market is performing, we have now added a graph comparing median price versus inventory for just the San Clemente real estate market.   Our goal with providing this graph below and on our real estate market data page as an addition to our monthly real estate market analysis in our blog, is to help educate you in how the market is performing so you feel confident with your real estate transaction.   At San Clemente Coastal Living we are not concerned about closing deals today, but rather are concerned about our client’s best interest and ensuring  you are comfortable with your real estate transaction.  This is ultimately the biggest purchase you will ever make, so we want you to put all the resources in your hands in order for you to make the most informed decision possible.

For more information on the San Clemente real estate market, please feel free to contact us for a free consultation.

If you own San Clemente real estate, including Talega real estate, and are deliquent on your payments, you may qualify for a mortgage modification under the Obama administration’s housing stabilization plan.  According to the article on CNN “Mortgage modifications are happening. Get Yours“ the following five simple steps is all you need to complete in order to stay in your San Clemente home or condo:

1. Visit the website MakingHomeAffordable.gov where everything you need to get started is located
2. Take the quiz to find out if you are eligible, meaning you bought your house before January 1, 2009, it is your primary residence, you owe less than $729,750, your payments are more than 31% of your monthly gross income, and you are deliquent on payments.  If you qualify based on these requirements, an eight item checklist of paperwork will need to be completed.
3. Complete all the required paperwork
4. Call your lender or the company you write your monthly mortgage check to and find out if they are participating in the plan, and if they are, you will be required to fill out an application and submit your documents
5. Wait for approval.  During this stage the lender will decide how to reduce your debt by either lowing your interest rate, extending the term of the loan, or reducing the amount you owe.  The lender will first bring your debt balance down to 38% of gross income and then the government will cover the rest by bringing it down to 31%.  Your loan will now be rewritten, you will sign new paperwork, and the new payment will go into effect on the next bill.  This can take several weeks to a month.

For more information on this program or about San Clemente real estate, please do not hesitate to contact us!

San Clemente real estate currently has 473 homes and condos for sale with 142 or 30% being distressed properties - short-sales and foreclosures / bank-owned.  The Talega real estate market currently has 86 homes and condos for sale with short-sales and bank-owned properties accounting for 40 or 46% of these.  There is a higher concentration of foreclosures and short-sales in the Talega real estate market due to it being built out from 1999 to present.   In terms of distressed properties west of Interstate 5 and east, only 23% of the properties are short-sales or foreclosures west of the freeway while 34% are east. 

For more information on San Clemente short-sales and foreclosures, please contact us or visit our exclusive San Clemente short-sale and foreclosure page

For those of you who are currently looking to buy in the San Clemente real estate market, you may want to consider buying new development, the majority of which is located in the Talega real estate market.  The state of California is currently offering a $10,000 tax credit if you buy new development.  In order to obtain this credit, you must:

• Purchase new development that has never been occupied before
• Live in the residence for a minimum of two years
• Purchase before March 1, 2010
• Submit your application for the credit within one week after the close of escrow
• Be eligible for the property tax homeowners exemption under CA Revenue and Tax Code Section 218

While the credit is available until March 1, 2010, you may want to act quickly as the state of California has only allocated $100 million to this fund and approximately $50 million has been used to date.  In addition, builders such as Standard Pacific out in Talega are still offering great incentives to purchase.  While you could walk directly into their sales offices, we recommend contacting us first as the sales agents for these developments work for the builder and have the builders best interest in mind and not necessarily yours.  We will be able to directly negotiate on your behalf in order to obtain the best purchase for the property based on your needs, recent sales in the neighborhood, and current market conditions.

Also, if you are a first time homebuyer, you may want to act by summer time in order to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit offered by the government if you close escrow by November 30, 2009.  This means as a first time buyer you would receive a total of $18,000 in tax credits, $10,000 from the state for buying new development and $8,000 for being a first time buyer purchasing before the end of November.

For more information on this credit, please contact us or visit the following link:  Tax Credit for New Home Purchase

San Clemente real estate, including Talega real estate, for the month of April 2009 compared to April 2008 continued to show improved sales figures.  The total number of San Clemente homes and condos sold during the month totaled 181 compared to 165 prior year, representing a 9.7% increase.  On the other hand, San Clemente homes and condos coming on the market for the month was down nearly 16.4% from prior year.  With more homes selling and fewer on the market, the inventory of San Clemente real estate for sale continues to retreat to historical levels. 

Current inventory based on April 2009 sales of 59 units is approximately eight months while a year ago there was more than 12 months of inventory on the market.  To add to the positive news, the average days on market for April 2009 was 88 as compared to 103 a year ago, representing a 14.8% decrease.  An average days on market of 60-90 days usually indicates a stable market.  The outlook for May continues to look strong as compared to prior year as there are currently 38 homes under contract, an increase of 26.7% from prior year.

The average sales price for April 2009 was $699,863 as compared to $984,916 a year ago, indicating that the bulk of sales continues to be short-sales and REOs / bank-owned properties.  If you would like more detailed information, such as the average sales price per square foot by different areas, neighborhoods or property types, please contact us and we will be happy to provide a more in depth analysis.