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Sunday, December 23, 2007
UPDATE Orange County mortgage casualties
These are announced and reported mortgage and real estate-related layoffs at major Orange County mortgage companies that have been verified by the Register:
ACC Capital Holdings, Orange. Laid off an estimated 3,000 of the 6,000 employees at its Ameriquest Mortgage Co., Argent Mortgage Co.and AMC Mortgage Serviceson March 15. Reported 1,072 layoffs in Orange County as of June 22 to the EDD. Seven more cuts at Argent were reported to the EDD effective Oct. 30. Last year, the companies laid off more than 4,000 people.
Accredited Home Lenders,Irvine. Reported 66 layoffs effective Aug. 22.
Acoustic Home Loans, Orange. Closed in April 2006. Laid off 203 people.
Bank of America, Brea. The bank said Oct. 25 that it is getting out of the mortgage wholesale business and will eliminate about 700 jobs nationwide, including 100 or less at its Brea loan processing facility.
BNC Mortgage LLC, Irvine. Reported 94 layoffs to the EDD, effective Aug. 12.
Lehman Brothers announced Aug. 22 it was closing the unit laying off 1,200 nationwide, including 450 in Irvine. Lehman reported to the EDD it was laying off an additional 199 BNC workers in Cypress and 198 in Irvine by Oct. 22. (See also Lehman Brothers below.).
Citigroup Inc., Brea. Reported 77 layoffs to the EDD effective June. 29.
Countrywide Home Loans, Anaheim. Reported 59 layoffs in January to the EDD. On Sept. 7, the company announced it would lay off up to 12,000 more workers nationwide including 900 job cuts previously announced Sept. 5. The company reported that 95 layoffs in its Anaheim office would be effective Nov. 12.
Dana Capital Group, Irvine. The lender reportedly closed the first week of May. Layoffs unknown.
DB Home Lending LLC., Lake Forest. Notified EDD it laid off 85 people on Aug. 27.
Ditech.com, Costa Mesa. Reported 181 layoffs effective July 3 to the EDD. On Oct. 17, Residential Capital LLC, said it was going to lay off 2,500 to 3,000 people nationwide. About 120 jobs will be eliminated at Ditech.
ECC Capital, Irvine. Sold its mortgage operation to Bear Stearns in February but said it would keep its 350 local workers. The company laid off about 600 people nationwide last year.
Encore Credit, Irvine. In August, parent company Bear Stearns cut about 100 jobs at Encore, a subprime lender it bought from Irvine’s ECC Capital, and about 140 jobs at Bear Stearns Residential, dubbed Bear Res, in Scottsdale, Ariz. On Oct. 3, Bear Stearns said it will merge Encore Credit with Bear Stearns Residential Mortgage, eliminating 310 jobs. EDD reports that about 72 of those jobs were in Irvine. Bear Stearns announced Nov. 28 it would cut an additional 650 jobs nationwide. National Mortgage News reports about 100 were in Irvine. On Dec. 18, Bear Stearns announced it was shutting down its Irvine loan-making operations, eliminating the remaining 150 jobs.
Express Capital Lending, Newport Beach. Reported 36 layoffs March 30 to the EDD.
Fieldstone Mortgage Corp., Cypress. Reported 51 layoffs Aug. 3 to the EDD.
The First American Corp., Santa Ana. Announced Sept. 4 it would lay off 1,300 people nationwide in its title insurance unit. This follows 600 jobs cut in the second quarter. OrangeCounty job losses unknown.
First Fidelity Financial, Aliso Viejo. It shut down Dec. 12, eliminating five jobs. At its peak, the company employed about 12 people.
First NLC Financial Services LLC, Orange. Reported 113 layoffs to the EDD when its Lewis Street office in Orange closed in March. On Aug. 1, the company said 640 jobs would be cut nationwide, including 79 of 160 workers at its West Coast headquarters in Anaheim.
First Street Financial, Irvine. Ceased operations June 15. Layoffs unknown.
Flexpoint Funding, Irvine. Reportedly closed its wholesale unit in July. Layoffs unknown.
Fremont Investment & Loan, Brea. The company announced March 2 that it was exiting the subprime business after federal regulators issued a proposed cease and desist order. Reported 62 initial layoffs in Anaheim March 5 to the EDD. Additional reported layoffs in Anaheim and Brea brings total to 470 as of Aug. 6.
GreenPoint Mortgage, Irvine. Parent company Capital One announced Aug. 20 it would close its wholesale mortgage unit, laying off 1,900 nationwide, 68 in Santa Ana.
H&R Block Mortgage Corp., Irvine. Announced 50 layoffs May 17. The company reported 133 additional layoffs effective July 10 and 170 more effective Nov. 17 bringing the total to 353.
Home Loan Center Inc./Lending Tree Loans, Irvine. Reported 271 layoffs effective July 10 to the EDD. On Aug. 17, LendingTree announced 24 layoffs in Irvine. On Sept. 28, LendingTree said it was cutting 250 jobs. Of those, 174 will be eliminated in Irvine by Nov. 27. The company announced Dec. 13 an additional 220 would be laid off, mostly at its Irvine loan center. About 500 people remain.
Homeview Lending Inc., Lake Forest. Reported 97 layoffs March 16 to the EDD.
Impac Mortgage Holdings Inc., Irvine. Announced May 9 that it laid off about 100 people out of about 800 in its workforce nationwide. On July 25, the company said it would lay off an additional 190 workers nationwide, including 43 in Orange County. More layoffs announced Aug. 22 –- 350 nationwide of which 270 are in California, mostly Irvine. On Sept. 18, the company said it was exiting most of its loan business. The company reported to the EDD that it would have 396 total layoffs in Irvine as of Nov. 10.
IndyMac Bancorp., Irvine. Announced 400 layoffs nationwide July 19 including 20 in Irvine. On Sept. 7, the company announced an additional1,000 jobs cuts. OrangeCountyimpact unknown
Lenders Direct Capital Corp., Lake Forest.Employees report the company closed Feb. 8. California Department of Real Estate records show the license is in non-working status, the company has no broker affiliation and that there is no current main office address. Total layoffs unknown.
Lehman Brothers, Irvine. The company announced 850 jobs cuts nationwide Sept. 6. (See BNC Mortgage above.)
Long Beach Mortgage Co., Anaheim. Parent company Washington Mutual confirmed Sept. 13 it is closing the former Anaheimheadquarters of Long Beach Mortgage and will lay off 155 people in 60 days. WaMu said it is cutting 1,000 jobs nationwide.
Master Financial Inc., Orange. Stopped lending March 14. Reported 50 Orange County layoffs to the EDD.
Morgan Stanley, Foothill Ranch. Announced Oct. 2 it would cut 600 jobs worldwide and consolidate its three mortgage businesses, Saxon Capital, Morgan Stanley Credit Corp. and Morgan Stanley Mortgage Capital Holdings, in Irving, Tex. It said it would retain its regional operations in Foothill Ranch. OrangeCounty impact unknown.
New Century Financial Corp., Irvine. Filed for bankruptcy April 2. An initial 2,000 workers were laid off nationwide, including nearly 500 in Orange County. The company reported to EDD that as of May 4, it had laid off a total of 1,051 people in its Irvine and Santa Ana offices.
Novastar Mortgage Inc., Lake Forest. Reported 56 layoffs March 16 to the EDD. Announced Aug. 18 it would shut down its wholesale lending operation, laying off an additional 500 workers nationwide, including 170 in Lake Forest.
Opteum Financial Services, Foothill Ranch. Reported 130 layoffs as of June 23 to the EDD.
Option One, Irvine. Parent company H&R Block said in November that it would sell Option One and close 12 branches, none in Orange County. On May 16, it announced 615 layoffs nationwide, including 133 in Orange County. Aug. 1 an additional 185 cuts announced nationwide. Layoffs in Orange County unknown. Announced 575 more layoffs Sept. 11, 85 in OrangeCounty. On Dec. 4, H&R Block announced it is closing its loan origination business, cutting 620 jobs nationwide. Irvine job loss unknown.
People’s Choice Home Loan, Irvine. Filed bankruptcy March 20. Reported 242 layoffs effective May 22 to the EDD.
Quick Loan Funding, Costa Mesa. Owner Daniel Sadek told the Orange County Register in May that the company payroll had shrunk from 700 at its height to about 125 now. Employees reported the week of Aug. 13 that the subprime lender had closed its doors. The main phone number went unanswered. Sadek declined to answer questions. Total layoffs unknown.
ResMae Mortgage Corp., Brea. Filed bankruptcy Feb. 12, saying it would keep 800 out of 1,037 jobs. Reported 185 layoffs effective May 19 to the EDD. An additional 72 jobs will be eliminated by Nov. 18.
Washington Mutual, Irvine. The bank announced Dec. 13 it laid off 215 people at its Irvine loan center as part a restructuring of its home loans business.
Wells Fargo Bank, Irvine. The bank confirmed Oct. 25 that it will lay off 51 workers in its Home and Consumer Finance Group by Nov. 13.
WMC-GEMB Mortgage Corp., Costa Mesa. Reported 29 layoffs effective May 7 to the EDD.
WNC-GEMB Mortgage Corp., Costa Mesa. Reported 59 layoffs effective June 18 to the EDD.
source: ocregister.com
ACC Capital Holdings, Orange. Laid off an estimated 3,000 of the 6,000 employees at its Ameriquest Mortgage Co., Argent Mortgage Co.and AMC Mortgage Serviceson March 15. Reported 1,072 layoffs in Orange County as of June 22 to the EDD. Seven more cuts at Argent were reported to the EDD effective Oct. 30. Last year, the companies laid off more than 4,000 people.
Accredited Home Lenders,Irvine. Reported 66 layoffs effective Aug. 22.
Acoustic Home Loans, Orange. Closed in April 2006. Laid off 203 people.
Bank of America, Brea. The bank said Oct. 25 that it is getting out of the mortgage wholesale business and will eliminate about 700 jobs nationwide, including 100 or less at its Brea loan processing facility.
BNC Mortgage LLC, Irvine. Reported 94 layoffs to the EDD, effective Aug. 12.
Lehman Brothers announced Aug. 22 it was closing the unit laying off 1,200 nationwide, including 450 in Irvine. Lehman reported to the EDD it was laying off an additional 199 BNC workers in Cypress and 198 in Irvine by Oct. 22. (See also Lehman Brothers below.).
Citigroup Inc., Brea. Reported 77 layoffs to the EDD effective June. 29.
Countrywide Home Loans, Anaheim. Reported 59 layoffs in January to the EDD. On Sept. 7, the company announced it would lay off up to 12,000 more workers nationwide including 900 job cuts previously announced Sept. 5. The company reported that 95 layoffs in its Anaheim office would be effective Nov. 12.
Dana Capital Group, Irvine. The lender reportedly closed the first week of May. Layoffs unknown.
DB Home Lending LLC., Lake Forest. Notified EDD it laid off 85 people on Aug. 27.
Ditech.com, Costa Mesa. Reported 181 layoffs effective July 3 to the EDD. On Oct. 17, Residential Capital LLC, said it was going to lay off 2,500 to 3,000 people nationwide. About 120 jobs will be eliminated at Ditech.
ECC Capital, Irvine. Sold its mortgage operation to Bear Stearns in February but said it would keep its 350 local workers. The company laid off about 600 people nationwide last year.
Encore Credit, Irvine. In August, parent company Bear Stearns cut about 100 jobs at Encore, a subprime lender it bought from Irvine’s ECC Capital, and about 140 jobs at Bear Stearns Residential, dubbed Bear Res, in Scottsdale, Ariz. On Oct. 3, Bear Stearns said it will merge Encore Credit with Bear Stearns Residential Mortgage, eliminating 310 jobs. EDD reports that about 72 of those jobs were in Irvine. Bear Stearns announced Nov. 28 it would cut an additional 650 jobs nationwide. National Mortgage News reports about 100 were in Irvine. On Dec. 18, Bear Stearns announced it was shutting down its Irvine loan-making operations, eliminating the remaining 150 jobs.
Express Capital Lending, Newport Beach. Reported 36 layoffs March 30 to the EDD.
Fieldstone Mortgage Corp., Cypress. Reported 51 layoffs Aug. 3 to the EDD.
The First American Corp., Santa Ana. Announced Sept. 4 it would lay off 1,300 people nationwide in its title insurance unit. This follows 600 jobs cut in the second quarter. OrangeCounty job losses unknown.
First Fidelity Financial, Aliso Viejo. It shut down Dec. 12, eliminating five jobs. At its peak, the company employed about 12 people.
First NLC Financial Services LLC, Orange. Reported 113 layoffs to the EDD when its Lewis Street office in Orange closed in March. On Aug. 1, the company said 640 jobs would be cut nationwide, including 79 of 160 workers at its West Coast headquarters in Anaheim.
First Street Financial, Irvine. Ceased operations June 15. Layoffs unknown.
Flexpoint Funding, Irvine. Reportedly closed its wholesale unit in July. Layoffs unknown.
Fremont Investment & Loan, Brea. The company announced March 2 that it was exiting the subprime business after federal regulators issued a proposed cease and desist order. Reported 62 initial layoffs in Anaheim March 5 to the EDD. Additional reported layoffs in Anaheim and Brea brings total to 470 as of Aug. 6.
GreenPoint Mortgage, Irvine. Parent company Capital One announced Aug. 20 it would close its wholesale mortgage unit, laying off 1,900 nationwide, 68 in Santa Ana.
H&R Block Mortgage Corp., Irvine. Announced 50 layoffs May 17. The company reported 133 additional layoffs effective July 10 and 170 more effective Nov. 17 bringing the total to 353.
Home Loan Center Inc./Lending Tree Loans, Irvine. Reported 271 layoffs effective July 10 to the EDD. On Aug. 17, LendingTree announced 24 layoffs in Irvine. On Sept. 28, LendingTree said it was cutting 250 jobs. Of those, 174 will be eliminated in Irvine by Nov. 27. The company announced Dec. 13 an additional 220 would be laid off, mostly at its Irvine loan center. About 500 people remain.
Homeview Lending Inc., Lake Forest. Reported 97 layoffs March 16 to the EDD.
Impac Mortgage Holdings Inc., Irvine. Announced May 9 that it laid off about 100 people out of about 800 in its workforce nationwide. On July 25, the company said it would lay off an additional 190 workers nationwide, including 43 in Orange County. More layoffs announced Aug. 22 –- 350 nationwide of which 270 are in California, mostly Irvine. On Sept. 18, the company said it was exiting most of its loan business. The company reported to the EDD that it would have 396 total layoffs in Irvine as of Nov. 10.
IndyMac Bancorp., Irvine. Announced 400 layoffs nationwide July 19 including 20 in Irvine. On Sept. 7, the company announced an additional1,000 jobs cuts. OrangeCountyimpact unknown
Lenders Direct Capital Corp., Lake Forest.Employees report the company closed Feb. 8. California Department of Real Estate records show the license is in non-working status, the company has no broker affiliation and that there is no current main office address. Total layoffs unknown.
Lehman Brothers, Irvine. The company announced 850 jobs cuts nationwide Sept. 6. (See BNC Mortgage above.)
Long Beach Mortgage Co., Anaheim. Parent company Washington Mutual confirmed Sept. 13 it is closing the former Anaheimheadquarters of Long Beach Mortgage and will lay off 155 people in 60 days. WaMu said it is cutting 1,000 jobs nationwide.
Master Financial Inc., Orange. Stopped lending March 14. Reported 50 Orange County layoffs to the EDD.
Morgan Stanley, Foothill Ranch. Announced Oct. 2 it would cut 600 jobs worldwide and consolidate its three mortgage businesses, Saxon Capital, Morgan Stanley Credit Corp. and Morgan Stanley Mortgage Capital Holdings, in Irving, Tex. It said it would retain its regional operations in Foothill Ranch. OrangeCounty impact unknown.
New Century Financial Corp., Irvine. Filed for bankruptcy April 2. An initial 2,000 workers were laid off nationwide, including nearly 500 in Orange County. The company reported to EDD that as of May 4, it had laid off a total of 1,051 people in its Irvine and Santa Ana offices.
Novastar Mortgage Inc., Lake Forest. Reported 56 layoffs March 16 to the EDD. Announced Aug. 18 it would shut down its wholesale lending operation, laying off an additional 500 workers nationwide, including 170 in Lake Forest.
Opteum Financial Services, Foothill Ranch. Reported 130 layoffs as of June 23 to the EDD.
Option One, Irvine. Parent company H&R Block said in November that it would sell Option One and close 12 branches, none in Orange County. On May 16, it announced 615 layoffs nationwide, including 133 in Orange County. Aug. 1 an additional 185 cuts announced nationwide. Layoffs in Orange County unknown. Announced 575 more layoffs Sept. 11, 85 in OrangeCounty. On Dec. 4, H&R Block announced it is closing its loan origination business, cutting 620 jobs nationwide. Irvine job loss unknown.
People’s Choice Home Loan, Irvine. Filed bankruptcy March 20. Reported 242 layoffs effective May 22 to the EDD.
Quick Loan Funding, Costa Mesa. Owner Daniel Sadek told the Orange County Register in May that the company payroll had shrunk from 700 at its height to about 125 now. Employees reported the week of Aug. 13 that the subprime lender had closed its doors. The main phone number went unanswered. Sadek declined to answer questions. Total layoffs unknown.
ResMae Mortgage Corp., Brea. Filed bankruptcy Feb. 12, saying it would keep 800 out of 1,037 jobs. Reported 185 layoffs effective May 19 to the EDD. An additional 72 jobs will be eliminated by Nov. 18.
Washington Mutual, Irvine. The bank announced Dec. 13 it laid off 215 people at its Irvine loan center as part a restructuring of its home loans business.
Wells Fargo Bank, Irvine. The bank confirmed Oct. 25 that it will lay off 51 workers in its Home and Consumer Finance Group by Nov. 13.
WMC-GEMB Mortgage Corp., Costa Mesa. Reported 29 layoffs effective May 7 to the EDD.
WNC-GEMB Mortgage Corp., Costa Mesa. Reported 59 layoffs effective June 18 to the EDD.
source: ocregister.com
Foreclosure investors tread mean streets
On a recent weeknight, about 30 people gathered at the Hotel Huntington Beach to learn about foreclosures.
The speaker was Ward Hannigan, a nonpracticing lawyer from San Diego who says he has bought 500 foreclosure properties in 25 years. Those investments have made him a wealthy man, he says.
But anybody who walked in thinking that buying distressed properties was a route to easy profits heard a different message from Hannigan.
"What it takes is almost an ironclad, grit-your-teeth determination to make money in foreclosures," he told the group.
Hannigan, a lively speaker who salts his talks with humor, walked his audience through the process of buying foreclosed properties at auction. As he described it, it's practically a full-time job.
Before bidding, a prospective investor should have driven by on which he plans to bid and researched any liens at the county recorder's office. She needs to have cashier's checks in her pocket to cover the full purchase price if she turns out to be the winning bidder.
And all that preparation is often for naught, as properties are frequently taken off the auction block at the last minute for a variety of reasons, including an agreement a homeowner has worked out with a lender to get out of default.
When he does buy a property, an investor might need to rehab it or evict the previous owner before he can prepare it for sale.
All of which makes it difficult to hold a day job.
Hannigan's talk attracted both experienced investors and those who were just starting to think about buying foreclosures.
Among the latter group was Jerry Tagliaferri. He recently got a real estate license after years of running a television repair business in Huntington Beach.
"Times are slow," Tagliaferri said of the market for home sales. "That's one of the things that steered me over into possibly, well, finding foreclosures."
Tagliaferri, who runs Springdale Realty Inc., attended Hannigan's talk to "see if it's feasible to do flipping or find a unit at the right price for a client who might be interested."
Tagliaferri has been attending foreclosure auctions in Placentia each weekday morning but hasn't seen much bidding. The vast majority of homes that are auctioned get no bids and become property of the lender, he said.
Those few properties with enough equity in them to attract bids are fought over fiercely. "It's really tough right now," he said.
In one sense, this was Tagliaferri's lucky night. He won a drawing for a free four-hour meeting with Hannigan, who typically charges $250 per hour for one-on-one training.
Jim Pollina drove down from San Luis Obispo County to hear Hannigan speak, the third time he's done so.
For the past dozen years, Pollina has been doing so-called hard-money lending, helping homeowners with equity avoid foreclosure in return for 12 percent interest.
"It's mind-boggling that there are so many people that actually go to foreclosure with a lot of equity still in the property," he said. For a long time he wondered why, but concluded there is no answer.
"From the viewpoint of someone who wants to invest in foreclosures, you just accept it as a given without asking why," he said.
Investing in foreclosures is something Pollina is still considering. "I definitely want to see if there's a conservative way of doing it without losing money," he says.
Of Hannigan, Pollina said: "He seems to be a little arrogant. … He holds back information. … I think he kind of teases the more serious people to get them to take his seminars, which are very expensive."
"But I'm seriously thinking of doing it. … It could be worth every dime if he really shows you techniques and gives you solid knowledge, and you get a leg up on the competition," Pollina said.
Hannigan's talk was sponsored by County Records Research, a Huntington Beach company that sells information about foreclosure properties to investors.
Kurt DeMeire, co-owner of County Records, said attendance was down from previous talks a few months ago, even though the number of properties going into foreclosure is up. That's because people are afraid to buy property, even at the discounted prices possible through foreclosures, because they think home values will continue to tumble.
"Those are the kind of people who come in when the market's already recovered, and they've lost the opportunity," DeMeire said. "People always get in at the wrong time."
source: ocregister.com
The speaker was Ward Hannigan, a nonpracticing lawyer from San Diego who says he has bought 500 foreclosure properties in 25 years. Those investments have made him a wealthy man, he says.
But anybody who walked in thinking that buying distressed properties was a route to easy profits heard a different message from Hannigan.
"What it takes is almost an ironclad, grit-your-teeth determination to make money in foreclosures," he told the group.
Hannigan, a lively speaker who salts his talks with humor, walked his audience through the process of buying foreclosed properties at auction. As he described it, it's practically a full-time job.
Before bidding, a prospective investor should have driven by on which he plans to bid and researched any liens at the county recorder's office. She needs to have cashier's checks in her pocket to cover the full purchase price if she turns out to be the winning bidder.
And all that preparation is often for naught, as properties are frequently taken off the auction block at the last minute for a variety of reasons, including an agreement a homeowner has worked out with a lender to get out of default.
When he does buy a property, an investor might need to rehab it or evict the previous owner before he can prepare it for sale.
All of which makes it difficult to hold a day job.
Hannigan's talk attracted both experienced investors and those who were just starting to think about buying foreclosures.
Among the latter group was Jerry Tagliaferri. He recently got a real estate license after years of running a television repair business in Huntington Beach.
"Times are slow," Tagliaferri said of the market for home sales. "That's one of the things that steered me over into possibly, well, finding foreclosures."
Tagliaferri, who runs Springdale Realty Inc., attended Hannigan's talk to "see if it's feasible to do flipping or find a unit at the right price for a client who might be interested."
Tagliaferri has been attending foreclosure auctions in Placentia each weekday morning but hasn't seen much bidding. The vast majority of homes that are auctioned get no bids and become property of the lender, he said.
Those few properties with enough equity in them to attract bids are fought over fiercely. "It's really tough right now," he said.
In one sense, this was Tagliaferri's lucky night. He won a drawing for a free four-hour meeting with Hannigan, who typically charges $250 per hour for one-on-one training.
Jim Pollina drove down from San Luis Obispo County to hear Hannigan speak, the third time he's done so.
For the past dozen years, Pollina has been doing so-called hard-money lending, helping homeowners with equity avoid foreclosure in return for 12 percent interest.
"It's mind-boggling that there are so many people that actually go to foreclosure with a lot of equity still in the property," he said. For a long time he wondered why, but concluded there is no answer.
"From the viewpoint of someone who wants to invest in foreclosures, you just accept it as a given without asking why," he said.
Investing in foreclosures is something Pollina is still considering. "I definitely want to see if there's a conservative way of doing it without losing money," he says.
Of Hannigan, Pollina said: "He seems to be a little arrogant. … He holds back information. … I think he kind of teases the more serious people to get them to take his seminars, which are very expensive."
"But I'm seriously thinking of doing it. … It could be worth every dime if he really shows you techniques and gives you solid knowledge, and you get a leg up on the competition," Pollina said.
Hannigan's talk was sponsored by County Records Research, a Huntington Beach company that sells information about foreclosure properties to investors.
Kurt DeMeire, co-owner of County Records, said attendance was down from previous talks a few months ago, even though the number of properties going into foreclosure is up. That's because people are afraid to buy property, even at the discounted prices possible through foreclosures, because they think home values will continue to tumble.
"Those are the kind of people who come in when the market's already recovered, and they've lost the opportunity," DeMeire said. "People always get in at the wrong time."
source: ocregister.com
Orange County home prices and sales
For the month of November 2007, sales for all types of Orange County home sales decreased 45.3 percent. The median sales price decreased 6.5 percent. The median is where half the homes sold for more and half for less. Types of homes selling, as well as home value changes, cause the median to change.
Take a look at the numbers from the last three months:
* August
* September
* October
Sortthis table by clicking on the labels at the top of each column.
"Change" is based on comparison to same period one year ago.
source: ocregister.com
Take a look at the numbers from the last three months:
* August
* September
* October
Sortthis table by clicking on the labels at the top of each column.
"Change" is based on comparison to same period one year ago.
source: ocregister.com
Contractors turn to foreclosure business
Ken and Susan Hussni of Yorba Linda are recent graduates of Ward Hannigan's one-on-one foreclosure training, having paid nearly $10,000 for 36 hours of face time over three days.
With times slow for their contracting business, which specializes in backyard ponds and waterfalls, the Hussnis are turning to foreclosures as a potential source of income and, they say, to help homeowners in distress.
Although they haven't done any deals yet, they plan to approach owners of properties that have substantial equity before the home is lost in a trustee's auction. Their pitch: Sell to us before the auction and walk away with half your equity rather than lose it all in foreclosure. They call their venture Guardian Angel Solutions.
"We can help these people," said Susan Hussni, who is trained as a crisis intervention counselor. "They're going to lose everything in two weeks. We can stop that."
The Hussnis plan to use their contracting skills to add "eye candy" to homes to attract buyers, Susan Hussni said. After a sale, they'll split whatever equity remains with the previous owner, minus the cost of renovations, she said.
source: naplesnews.com
With times slow for their contracting business, which specializes in backyard ponds and waterfalls, the Hussnis are turning to foreclosures as a potential source of income and, they say, to help homeowners in distress.
Although they haven't done any deals yet, they plan to approach owners of properties that have substantial equity before the home is lost in a trustee's auction. Their pitch: Sell to us before the auction and walk away with half your equity rather than lose it all in foreclosure. They call their venture Guardian Angel Solutions.
"We can help these people," said Susan Hussni, who is trained as a crisis intervention counselor. "They're going to lose everything in two weeks. We can stop that."
The Hussnis plan to use their contracting skills to add "eye candy" to homes to attract buyers, Susan Hussni said. After a sale, they'll split whatever equity remains with the previous owner, minus the cost of renovations, she said.
source: naplesnews.com
O.C. rent growth slows, but no big concessions yet
O.C. residential rent increases have slowed dramatically, but not enough to give tenants much negotiating room for give-backs, says the latest market analysis by Dallas-based Axiometrics Inc.
The average fourth quarter rent was $1,670 at the 199 major O.C. apartment complexes surveyed by Axiometrics. That was a 3 percent increase over fourth quarter 2006. But last year, rents were growing at a 5 percent pace and in 2005, they jumped 8.9 percent. This quarter’s average rent includes a mere $23 in concessions. That’s up from the low of $16 in 2005’s really-tight rental market, but is only 1.3 percent of the asking rent. It’s a far cry from the one-month-rent-free days, which is equivalent to an 8 percent concession.
Part of the reason for the slowing rent growth is lower occupancy rates. The average occupancy was 95.3 percent, down 1.1 percent from the fourth quarter 2006.
Axiometrics’ Jay Denton pointed to job growth as a major factor in slowing rent increases. O.C. job growth is flat. Chapman University is predicting job growth will be negative next year with a loss of 2,400 jobs, which will put further pressure on rents.
source: ocregister.com
The average fourth quarter rent was $1,670 at the 199 major O.C. apartment complexes surveyed by Axiometrics. That was a 3 percent increase over fourth quarter 2006. But last year, rents were growing at a 5 percent pace and in 2005, they jumped 8.9 percent. This quarter’s average rent includes a mere $23 in concessions. That’s up from the low of $16 in 2005’s really-tight rental market, but is only 1.3 percent of the asking rent. It’s a far cry from the one-month-rent-free days, which is equivalent to an 8 percent concession.
Part of the reason for the slowing rent growth is lower occupancy rates. The average occupancy was 95.3 percent, down 1.1 percent from the fourth quarter 2006.
Axiometrics’ Jay Denton pointed to job growth as a major factor in slowing rent increases. O.C. job growth is flat. Chapman University is predicting job growth will be negative next year with a loss of 2,400 jobs, which will put further pressure on rents.
source: ocregister.com
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