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I attended the USD free negotiation class the other day (presented via Zoom). I got a few takeways from it: virtual negotiations don't show inflection or emotions virtual negotiations dont have a time for sides to "caucus" or consult virtual negotations are going to be more popular, even after the COVID scare is over The Barcaks had some good suggestions for how to get over these challenges but I thought, for the most part, real estate brokers and agents really don't "negotiate" anymore-- they just email offers and counter offers. The art of "presenting in person" is lost (and that's a shame). I was lamenting this to a friend of mine, who is a real estate broker in Florida, and he told me of an experiment he tried last month. He assembled the buyers, the lender, and him, all together on a Zoom call, and outlined the offer to purchase... Continue reading

Q- Which offer to buy your home should you accept? A- The highest net offer which is most likely to close. That seems obvious, doesn't it, Let's consider the second part of the answer though. An old friend and Phoenix real estate broker Greg Swann, was promoting this new listing on his Facebook and asked me this question: Q- Can you reflect on the current state of borrowers? I've never loved FHA-ish loans, especially not in cash-poor offers. Obviously, everyone loves cash, and 80/20 conventional is hard to turn down. Are government loans still doable? If so, are they more or less risky to close than they were two months ago? My answer is: Great questions. Government loans are fine and, based upon whom the buyers may be, might be preferable. Here is the biggest concern from a lender/servicer's point of view; will the new buyers start deferring mortgage payments... Continue reading

I hate being stuck at home during this COVID crisis. I hate it but I see an incredible opportunity for me and for you, the professional REALTOR. My friend Leigh Brown is a real estate broker/owner in North Carolina-- I have known her for close to 14 years now. Leigh was interviewed by Housing Wire about what she is doing during the COVID crisis. While you would benefit by reading the full interview, please look at this: The other thing that I’m doing to encourage my team is I’m just reminding them who we have to call and that we all have to be making phone calls. It’s not just the sales staff. It’s the admin team, too, and there’s different things that they can say, but they can still be touching their neighbors and checking on their neighbors because a lot of what we’re doing right now, of course,... Continue reading

Want to hear something scary? Mortgage industry association executive Anthony Casa thinks VA and FHA lending will cease to exist as soon as April 15, 2020. He breaks it down for mortgage brokers in this 9-minute video. If you don't want to watch Anthony's video, mortgage trainer Barry Habib explained the VA/FHA liquidity crisis in this long article. I might suggest that you watch Anthony's video and read Barry's article if you are a REALTOR who services veterans and first-time homebuyers. If you don't want to watch the video or read the article. Here is an explantion (pay close attention to emboldened statements) There are four major particpants in the mortgage market: 1- lenders (originators) 2- servicers (collect monthly payments and remit them to investors) 3- investors (for VA/FHA loans, those are GNMA pass-through securitires) 4- Wall Street (hedges interest-rate risk for lenders and packages loans sold from servicers to... Continue reading

A North County Realtor asked me to help her answer the question, "Has real estate peaked in 2020?". The short answer is "No.' Here is the long answer: We have a supply/demand imbalance which won't get much better for years to come, maybe decades to come. f you REALLY want to get a read on the supply problem (and potential for upwards pricing) perform this exercise: Run a search (on Homesnap) for 3 BR /2BA properties FOR SALE , in all of Carlsbad, under $850K. Now run that same search for "UNDER CONTRACT" Then look at them overlaid-. This frightens me. What I can't determine is whether this is a demand curve shift (which means that prices are about to rise dramatically) or whether this is a seasonal/cyclical top. I sincerely believe the former, mostly because of this article about demand (and many other articles before it.) I saw this... Continue reading

Americans used to move every 7 years in the late 20th Century. This decade, the average is close to every 9 years and those two years are clogging up the housing market. Theories, over the past decade were: (1) the house/mortgage was "upside-down", locking owners into their homes and then, after 2015 (2) nobody wanted to lose the low mortgage rate they have. The "low rate theory" is now debunked. Mortgage rates are the lowest as they have been since 2011 and people still aren't moving like they used to: The rate lockdown thesis is easy to test. If it holds up, then when mortgage rates fall, homeowners who have been anxiously waiting will put their homes on the market, and inventory will open up. Except that has never happened in this cycle. Inventory always went down when rates lowered because demand got better. The only time inventory went up... Continue reading

I try to speak to 25 real estate agents a week on the telephone. It's pretty hard because none of you answer your phone anymore. Before you jump back at me and say "maybe they didn't want to talk to YOU, Brian", you should know that I have called from different numbers so that's not the case. Last week, I called over 150 real estate agents just to speak with 25 of you and that kind of shocked me. I am not alone. The number one problem I hear from real estate agents is that other real estate agents don't answer their phone when THEY call-- clients tell me the same thing. ANSWER YOUR PHONE when it rings during business hours and I promise you that you will close more business. That call could be a new buyer, an agent with a buyer for your listing, an appraiser who needs... Continue reading

I have been talking about the housing backlog for a few years-- it's getting MUCH worse. Companies are leaving California because their labor costs, to compensate for the high cost of housing, make it nearly impossible to operate as a profitable concern. California has the highest percentage of the homeless population in the nation; one in four of this country's homeless people live in California. While wealthy, older people are moving TO California, the next generation is leaving California at a record pace. If you are rich and have gray hair, enjoy our little paradise but, if you are young and upwardly mobile, we don't have room for you. So, leave. This is a problem. Fortunately, the rest of California is realizing what I have been screaming about for the last 4 years-- we need more housing. While everyone acknowledges that we have a housing shortage crisis, the politicians are... Continue reading

I like doing what I do because I can help people solve problems: I met a lady today who has a 30 year old son who moved to Vegas three months ago-- he doesn't want to stay there. His girlfriend lives here and is getting a Master's degree and they plan on getting married. His mother and stepfather own a home in Paradise Hills which they bought, 10 years ago, as a HUD repo-- they are sitting on a LOT of equity. Mother says, "I wish I could just buy a duplex so we could both live there" "How much land do you have?", asks I. "I have a huge backyard; I could build whole house on it" says Mother. "Accessory Dwelling Unit. Build one for $50-70K, with already-approved plans from the City of San Diego, move the kids in and when grandchildren come, switch houses. " I offered. "I... Continue reading

The buzz about the Golden Globes was Ricky Gervais' irreverant takedown of Hollywood in his monologue but Tom Hanks offered the best career advice for ANYONE in his acceptance speech for the Cecil B. DeMille Award. I thought the three things Hanks offered, in his speech, could greatly improve how we serve our customers and want to share them with you: Show Up On Time "Showing up on time is one of the greatest liberating acts you can give yourself in a movie. That means those people with radios in their ears don't need to knock on your door and say they're ready for you. You're actually already ready. And you have the liberty, and you have the freedom of being there early enough to settle down--because when the time comes, you have to hit the marks, and you have to 'go there."-- Tom Hanks Real estate brokerage and finance... Continue reading

These 8 things can hold you back from being the REALTOR you thought you would be when you first got your license. Consider giving up: 1- An unhealthy lifestyle. I am as guilty of this as most of you but, as you grind and grind away, there are four things you NEED to have the energy to produce at a superstar level: a- 7-8 hours of sleep each night b- a healthy diet c- daily exercise (even if it's walking for an hour) d- play. (build a sandcastle on the beach sometime) 2- a Short-Term Mindset. Successful people set long-term goals, and they know that these aims are merely the result of short-term habits that they need to do every day. Break down what you want into daily disciplines and make those daily disciplines non-negotiables. I started speaking with a minimum of five past clients/day in 2017 and it made... Continue reading

I need your help. If you could spend a couple of minutes reading this and replying with an answer, I'd be grateful. Every year, since 2008, I have published a "San Diego Housing Outlook" for the upcoming year. I talk about "themes" and try to identify undervalued neighborhoods which fit those themes In 2008, while the market was starting to decline, I liked the theme "Blue Collar Beach Towns" and suggested that investors/home buyers consider Oceanside and Imperial Beach. In 2011, I felt that most every property in San Diego County was a buy because they were selling below "fundamental value" . Two years ago, I suggested that millennial home buyers would migrate to suburban, single-family homes and out of the condos in urban neighborhoods. I still think the theme of migration to singe-family homes is a valid one but I need your help. There is a shortage of SFR's... Continue reading

Why are San Diego housing prices so high? a- the ocean? b- temperate climate? c- strong economy? d- proximity to Mexico? e- real estate is a rigged game in San Diego The answer is a combination of all answers but "e" is the best answer. San Diego News Desk points out the glaring supply/demand imbalance in San Diego County: In 2010, data revealed that San Diego was short 59,000 housing units. Furthermore, if one were to include the past 20 years, the data would reveal that San Diego is actually 140,000 housing units short. San Diego has tried to recover from the 1990 recession that involved Southern California, but three decades later, San Diego has failed to approve the permits needed. The refusal to grant building permits, in turn, is producing the very slow homebuilding pace seen in San Diego. This impediment is ruining the housing market by artificially restricting... Continue reading

Guess what? Zillow is entering the San Diego residential real estate market and Realtors should take it seriously: Zillow Offers is continuing its expansion, announcing Monday it will be buying and selling homes in San Diego. Through its iBuying service, Zillow seeks to provide a solution by enabling sellers to forget about the hassle of cleaning their home, forgoing home repairs, open houses, and the like. They can even choose the date they want to sell and move by. (For more on what, exactly, is an iBuyer, read this.) I know. I know. Zillow is no competition for a professional, local expert...or is it? What San Diego Realtors often miss is that, while iBuyers may "low-ball" sellers, looking for homes with cosmetic repairs needed, the simple fact is that the iBuyers end up negotiating with sellers long before an agent has a chance to prsent his/her services. Here is my... Continue reading

You have heard me talk about China and it's effect on California real estate a lot. Just two years ago, I was on TV, talking about the oversized influence Chinese nationals had on Southern California real estate. Since then, a trade war with China escalated and the Chinese government cracked down on capital leaving Mainland China. The result has been lower mortgage rates and lower real estate prices in areas where Chinese nationals were buying properties. Chinese buyers aren't as active as they were two years ago: A big reason Chinese investors are retreating from the American housing market is that Beijing has placed tight limits on how much capital can leave the country in the wake of a devaluation in the yuan a few years ago. “In China, each family member has been restricted to $50,000 or less,” says Steven Ho, senior loan officer at Quontic, a New York... Continue reading

The long-waited Federal Housing Administration (FHA) rule regulating condominium lending was finalized last week.The new rule, which becomes effective on October 15, will allow a homebuyer to obtain an FHA mortgage for an individual condo unit in an unapproved condominium project if that project is completed and meets the following criteria: In a development with fewer than 10 units, no more than two can be insured by FHA. In a development that exceeds 10 units, a maximum of 10 percent can be insured by the FHA. A minimum of 50 percent of project units must be owner-occupied. The rule change also extends the certification period from two to three years and expands the eligibility criteria for mixed-use units. HUD estimates the new rules will make an additional 20,000 to 60,000 condo units eligible for FHA insured loans each year Continue reading

This set of questions came in from a veteran about recent rule changes for VA Interest Rate Reduction Loans: 1- What is the "36 month rule"? 2- Do you have to have a year in the old loan to refinance again? 3- Is there a funding fee for refinanced VA loans? There are two types of refinance loan for the VA: The VA Interest Rate Reduction Loan (IRRL) permits the veteran to refinance the loan balance with no cash returned to the veteran. It has a funding fee of .5% of the loan amount unless the veteran has a VA-rated disability. It does not require an appraisal. A veteran is eligible refinance his/her loan after he/she makes six monthly payments. If the lender is not paying the veteran's closing costs, the closing costs paid or financed (including the funding fee) must be "recouped" within 36 months. In other words, if... Continue reading

Mortgage rates fell more yesterday, extending their reaction to Wednesday's Federal Reserve announcement that they will stop raising the discount rate. The Fed isn't in direct control of interest rates; the free market largely decides rates due to factors like growth, inflation, and supply/demand of bonds. That said, the Fed plays a big role in helping/hindering the natural economic currents. They adjust accordingly to try to keep the economy firing on all cylinders without inflation overheating and without big financial stability risks. THAT is why the free market pays a LOT of attention to the Fed. Some economists thinks the Fed's pause is temporary and that higher mortgage rates are inevitable. If you are buying or refinancing a home this week, this is really good news. World Wide Credit Corporation locked loans between 4.125% and 4.625% this week and offered some VA loans at under 4% with a discount fee.... Continue reading

The 2019 San Diego County loan limit is $690.000, up from $649.750 in 2018. In Orange & Los Angeles counties, it's $726.525 and in Riverside, San Bernardino, and Imperial counties, it's $484,000. The higher loan limit affects FNMA, Freddie Mac, and FHA loans. For VA loans, the county limit is for zero down payment loans ONLY. VA loans have no loan "limit" but may require a down payment for prices over the county limit. Read about how to calculate the VA downpayment for purchases over $690,000 here This year, the FHFA published this interactive loan limit map, showing the loan limit for every county in the US. For fun, compare the 2016 Presidential election map (by county) with the FHFA interactive loan limit map. If you click both links, the maps will open side-by-side Continue reading

Yes, you can still make money in San Diego real estate and no, I dont know if property prices are going to drop. Here is what I DO know; there is a housing shortage in San Diego and rental rates should keep rising. This means that, if you buy a property at the right price, and intend to hold it for 7-10 years, you should really make some money. Let me share with you the most recent transaction I handled for an investor. I represented the investor and my wife Debra handled the financing. Our investor bought a Mission Valley 2 BR, 1 BA condo for $355,000. We closed on it three days ago (June 12) She put 30% down and, with closing costs, it cost here $113,000 cash-to- close. Her mortgage payment, including taxes, insurance, and HOA fee is $2096. You can see the whole financing breakdown here I... Continue reading

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My homebuyer clients like that I attend their loan closings but it's not because I do anything. When I attend, I usually review the closing statement, note, and deed of trust and then I drink cofee for an hour while the notary does his/her job. Three reasons why I attend closings: 1- I want to be there if there are any questions about the closing documents. 2- Clients who have professional attend their closing tend to be more satisfied with performance. It absolutely matters whether or not loan officers attend their closings. Being present to explain rates and fees to the borrower is just one example of where a loan officer can mitigate a potentially negative borrower experience. Add in delayed starts to closings, unresolved problems, and confusion regarding last minute changes and you begin to understand the importance of face-to-face interaction between loan officers and borrowers at the closing... Continue reading

Are San Diego Realtors using VA loans properly in their real estate brokerage business? Most agents don’t fully understand them and their customers are suffering because of it. Here are four myths, truths, and action items about VA home loans which could help Realtors serve veterans better: LOAN MYTH 1: You have to be on active duty, in the military service, to use a VA home loan. FACT: Eligibility is determined by current and past service. Essentially, if a veteran served for at least six months, from 1964 to today, they most likely have VA home loan eligibility. There are 15 million veterans under the age of 65 today; most of them should be eligible. ACTION ITEM: Ask every new homebuyer, regardless of their age if they served. Don’t rule out the ladies; about 10% of those vets are women. LOAN MYTH 2: Sellers have to pay for the veteran’s... Continue reading