It's hard to take an objective look at the real estate market these days, with short sale and foreclosures seemingly eclipsing the "regular" sellers these days. A snapshot in time of all pending sales (homes in escrow) on any given day can help to determine exactly what is selling, and what is not, within a certain timeframe. Below is a snapshot of the pending sales, or homes that are in escrow, in both Valencia and Canyon Country as of today, March 13, 2008. Interesting to note is that both areas have almost the same number of homes in escrow that are either short sales or corporate owned (defined for this purpose as REOs, relocation company owned or probate sales). However, that's where the similarities end. Valencia escrows that are "regular" sales (not short sales, REO, relo company owned, or probate sales) are 54.4% of the total homes currently in escrow, where only 28.9% of Canyon Country's pending sales fall into this category. | Valencia | Canyon Country |
|---|
| # of Homes | % of Homes | # of Homes | % of Homes | | Short Sale | 26 | 20.8% | 32 | 28.1% | | REO, Relo, Probate | 31 | 24.8% | 33 | 28.9% | | Builder Close-Outs | 0 | 0.0% | 16 | 14.0% | | "Regular" Sellers | 68 | 54.4% | 33 | 28.9% | | Total Escrows | 125 | 100.0% | 114 | 100.0% |
Since it can be difficult to determine all short sales and REOs based on just the listing data, there may be a few escrows that appear to be "regular" sellers that are in fact either corporate owned or short sales. Also, there is no set standard as to when a short sale listing is moved from "active" to "pending" status. It can either be when an offer is submitted to the bank and is still subject to the bank's approval (meaning that the sale can still be denied by the bank), or it can be when the offer is fully approved by the bank (meaning that the sale will close unless the buyers change their mind). While it is still a buyer's market in the Santa Clarita area, we are starting to see homes selling within relatively short timeframes if they are priced and marketed properly. [Shameless self-promotion: My listing in Galleria at Alta Vista is now in escrow after only 14 days on the market, and it's owned by a "regular" seller.] |
