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Displaying blog entries 731-740 of 821

Oregon Foreclosure Information

by Liz Warren

The National Association of Realtors has published some interesting information on Oregon foreclosures for 2009. Our state has been in the news recently at number three in the country for foreclosures. Here is the breakdown of home ownership and home foreclosures based on the type of loan the homeowner received. Prime loans are the biggest percentage of foreclosures in 2009 reflecting the high unemployment rate in Oregon.

See Mt. Hood Area Foreclosures here

Mt. Hood's Swelling Summer Population

by Liz Warren

You know its summer on the mountain when the arty funky buses pull into the Hoodland shopping center filled with kids who swamp local stores. These kids are from all over who visit our area to attend ski and snowboarding camps.

Shawn White, who won Gold in the 2010 Canadian Olympics for half pipe, brought untold publicity to the Mt. Hood area with our year round summer skiing and boarding. This was one of the areas he trained at throughout his career and we garnered great advertising for the Palmer Glacier, Timberline, and all our surrounding burbs of Government Camp, Welches, Rhododendron and Brightwood. We have two re-known camps in our area, Windells, in Brightwood and High Cascade in Government Camp. Shawn attended Windells.

Here is an article in OregonLive that gives more details on our summer treasure. At nearly $1500-$1800 per week for campers to attend, this gives a major shot in the arm economically to local business owners who garner the spending of the kids and often their parents who vacation in our state while their kids are in camp.

Mt. Hood has seen its share of business closures due to tough economic times so this is a welcome reprieve and a shot of cash for many of our smaller businesses!

 

Lowest Interest Rates Since 1971!

by Liz Warren

That is right. Read the headline! These are the lowest interest rates since 1971! We are talking nearly 40 years.

Average 30-year home loan rates : 4.69 percent

Average 15-year mortgage rates are just 4.15 percent

Buy now or take advantage of a refi. These are unbelieveable rates!

 

Mt. Hood Seven Sales for May 2010

by Liz Warren

Mt. Hood Sales for May 2010

Here are the seven sales for the month of May in 2010 in the Mt. Hood Area. Two of these homes were foreclosures and finally, a forest service cabin sold!

Now that the Fed stimulous is over there is a major rush to close those deals by the end of June. This may have pushed purchasers into the first half of the year for buying and many experts predict a lag in July and August since many buyers took advantage of that tax credit opportunity. Even though this tax credit was extended into 2010, only one fifth of the numbers seen in 2009 took advantage compared to the surge of sales in 2009. Numbers are weak throughout the US for 2010 with new mortgage applications lagging and new construction sales down by 32% according to Reuters today.

Mt. Hood Real Estate Sales for May 2010

by Liz Warren

The Portland Metro RMLS has sent out the latest sales for May 2010. Here are the stats:

Mt Hood real estate sales May 2010

The numbers tell the story. Lots of inventory coming on to the market for summer with 36 new listings in May! Although this chart tells us there were six sales, there were actually seven. Pending sales are up compared to last year at this time with a 50% increase. The majority of these pending sales are foreclosures under $200,000.

Buying Mt. Hood Foreclosures

by Liz Warren

If you are considering purchasing a foreclosure on Mt. Hood from Government Camp, Rhododendron, Welches or Brightwood, you may want to review the "gut check list" here:

Distressed Property Buyer Info

foreclosures demand a different mindset from buyers and they need to be mentally prepared.

View Foreclosures in our area here

It's Time To Buy

by Liz Warren

Graduations are over and school is out. Now is the time to buy with increased inventory giving lots of opportunities for choices on the mountain! Interest rates are the best we've seen in a long time and sellers are motivated. The rain is over and there's plenty to look at so take advantage of these times.

Your dollars will go farther with low interest rates. If rates increase by 1% you will loose 10% of your buying power. There are many foreclosures and short sales too for bargain hunters and investors!

Case Shiller's Numbers For Portland

by Liz Warren

It's the perfect storm for buyers of Mt. Hood properties. An incredible inventory of choices and some of THE BEST INTEREST RATES we've seen plus MANY motivated sellers!

This chart shows the Case Shiller numbers over the years for cities and how they look during different time frames from the peak of the market. I'm glad I don't live in Vegas! Of course the Mt. Hood area, which is predominately a second home market, will be greater than 21% but to pin that number down is not within my capabilities.

Portland Case Shiller Index for March 2010

 

 

Help Prevent More Real Estate Taxes!

by Liz Warren

Congress is at it again. They are working towards changing the tax code to have negative impacts on owning real estate. If you have a rental you may want to pay attention to this:

1)     Congress is proposing that all owners of rental properties be required to file IRS 1099 forms on service providers such as electricians, plumbers, and landscapers. This arduous provision would apply to even the smallest landlord, as anyone who receives rental income will be required to comply with the new tax provisions if they pay any contractor $600 or more in any given year.

 2)     Congress is considering taxing “carried interest” at ordinary income rates instead of capital gains. Carried interest rules govern how general partners in real estate investments pay taxes when an investment is sold. By increasing the tax burden on these real estate partnerships, the proposal would make real estate a less attractive investment. For the first time, this proposal would prevent a particular type of real estate investment gain from qualifying for capital gains.

You should contact Ron Wyden, Jeff Merkley and Earl Blumenauer and let your opinion get voiced today!

Mt. Hood Closed Sales for April 2010

by Liz Warren

What market segments closed in April 2010? Sales for the Mt. Hood area were up in numbers-that's the good news. The negative news is that five of the ten sales were foreclosures. On the other hand, that is good news in that the inventory is getting reduced. Take a look at the ten sales below. The two higher end sales-over $300,000 were foreclosures. There are currently twelve foreclosures on the market in the Mt. Hood area.

Mt. Hood Home Sales for April 2010

Displaying blog entries 731-740 of 821

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