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Old Sacramento will "Go Green!" for its annual St.
Patrick's Day Parade with several eco-friendly parade
entries...
Old Sacramento, a 28-acre historic landmark and state historic park, will "Go Green!" for its annual St. Patrick's Day Parade with several eco-friendly parade entries and the lighting of select buildings in green. In addition, the historic district will launch a recycling program in the weeks leading up to the 12th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. The "Go Green!" program begins on Saturday, March 1 and runs through Monday, March 17, 2008. To participate in the "Go Green!" campaign, the public is invited to not only wear green to the March 17 parade, but also support a recycling program featuring the AT&T Real Yellow Pages. Residents are encouraged to bring their old phone books to the Old Sacramento Visitor Center, located at 1002 Second Street, from March 1 - March 17. Participants who "go green" can "save green" by picking up an Old Sac value pack at the Visitor Center between 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. The value pack (valued at $25) features discounts and prizes from select merchants. Up to four lucky people will win "Honorary Leprechaun for the Day" with a VIP spot in this year's St. Patrick's Day Parade, followed by a traditional Irish dinner aboard the Delta King. Written by Nancy Mallory with Mallory & Associates |
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Banks and distressed sellers are finally seeing buyer
movement," said Michael Lyon, CEO of Lyon Real
Estate. "The bulk of sales are under $400,000 and
60% of those transactions for both closed and pended
sales are REO (bank owned). Closed escrows under
$400,000 are up 30% and pendings are up 100%
from December 2007.
Professional investors are very active with first-time home buyers, competing for the best properties. The change came as REO prices dropped below an average of $150 per square foot. Above $400,000 sales are 50% slower than they were one year ago, with inventory levels just under one year" TRENDGRAPHIX's latest report shows that sales decreased 12% during the month of January for the Tri-County region of Sacramento, Placer and El Dorado Counties. January 2008 sales were 4% lower than January 2007 sales. Pending sales increased by 49 percent from December 2007 to January 2008. January 2008 inventory of 12,656 homes for sale is 23% higher than January 2007 inventory. This is a 17% decrease for the regional inventory record high of 15,302 set in August 2007. |
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$449,000 in gated Heritage Oaks, Roseville,
CA
Well manicured neighborhood with a fabulous clubhouse in gated Heritage oaks. This home is across the street from the clubhouse; tennis, bocce ball, horse shoes, pool & spa, gym, library, event room. Schedule of events numerousapprox. 2634 sq ft, 3-4 bed/3bath home is situated on a corner lot allowing natural sunlight throughout the entire home. Single story, open floor plan with high ceilings throughout. Large master bedroom and den complete with built-ins. Spacious formal living & dining room creates a beautiful entry to home. Relaxing backyard fully landscaped with numerous rose bushes, gardens and paths throughout. True escape! Location, Location, Location - minutes from the new upscale shopping experience, The Fountains, which will be complete summer 2008. Close to I-80, Galleria Mall, Nugget, Whole Foods & golf! OPEN HOUSE THIS SATURDAY MARCH 8 FROM 1- 4PM. Call Kia Kapci for a showing today! |
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Freddie and Fannie can now purchase loans
worth as much as $793,000, while the FHA can insure
loans for up to $729,000.
Mortgage costs just got cheaper for buyers in high- cost areas. The size of loans that can be guaranteed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae was raised today by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. The new, higher loan limits will stay in effect through the end of the year, allowing the government sponsored enterprises (GSEs), to buy much higher-priced mortgages in some areas of the country. Also today, the size of the loans that the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) can insure was raised by Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Both moves will lower borrowing costs for buyers of higher priced homes, and aim to boost flagging real estate markets. Best time to buy a home in four years Previously, Fannie and Freddie could only insure mortgages of up to $417,000, called conforming loans. That meant, assuming a 20% down payment, that only buyers of homes costing $521,500 or less were eligible for mortgages with GSE backing. The new loan limits for Fannie and Freddie vary by area based on local median home prices and go as high as $793,750 in Honolulu. (For details, see table below). Loan limits for FHA-insured loans were even lower; no more than $362,790. Now mortgages of up to $729,750 will qualify for FHA insurance. The problem was that there are whole swaths of the nation where the typical home cost far more than that, and non-conforming or "jumbo loans" carry interest rates of about a point higher. For a $500,000 mortgage, that's an additional spending of $330 a month. In many parts of the country prices are much higher. In San Jose, Calif, the median priced home costs nearly $850,000, according to the latest figures from the National Association of Realtors. In San Francisco, the figure is nearly $780,000; in Anaheim, Calif.; $657,000; in Honolulu $625,000; and in the New York metro area, $525,000. That means more than half the loans in those markets would not qualify under conforming loan limits. "Families in high-cost states have been priced out of FHA-backed loans," HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson said earlier today, in a speech before the Las Vegas Association of Realtors. "This has created a vacuum, filled by exotic subprime loans." During the liquidity squeeze that began during the summer of 2007, jumbo loans became very difficult to find even for well-qualified borrowers. that made it hard to buy homes in certain regions, freezing up real estate markets. By making it easier for buyers to get loans, regulators hope to get these markets moving again. The new loan limits affect 71 metropolitan areas, as well as 21 counties outside of those metro areas. Article by Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer |
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FOR A FREE MARKET ANALYSIS OF YOUR HOME AND ESTIMATE OF VALUE CALL OR EMAIL ME! I WILL GET YOU THE INFO WITHIN 24 HOURS OF YOUR REQUEST. Please contact me with all of your real estate needs and questions. I am always available to you, your family and friends!
Happy St. Patrick's Day,
Kia Kapci
Lyon Real Estate
email:
kkapci@golyon.com
phone:
916-782-0558
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