Archive for December, 2018
Homeownership Day at Chapman University – have you registered?
Our annual is Homeownership Day is coming soon!
This years OC Home Fair at Chapman University (1 University Drive in Orange) is on January 19th from 10 AM – 1 PM and we are so excited to see you there! This year will feature more classes than previous years and so much opportunity to further your knowledge in real estate and investing in your future. We have some amazing speakers planned for you this year!
NAWRB’s OC Home Fair Class
Desiree Patno the CEO and President of Women in the Housing and Real Estate EcoSystem (NAWRB)Women in the Housing and Real Estate EcoSystem (NAWRB) will be teaching a class at this years OC Home Fair about “Buying a home under your business umbrella.” Desiree’s knowledge and experience in the real estate business is incredible and being able to hear her speak in such a small setting is a true treat. NAWRB is dedicated to providing women with tools and opportunities for economic expansion and growth, while advocating and promoting women-owned business specializing in the housing economy. Joining NAWRB provides you with many benefits such as: Leadership opportunities, resource and business growth, marketing and exposure, access to executive resources, NAWRB’s business directory, and direct referrals from NAWRB. You can learn even more about the benefits of NAWRB and so much more if you attend this years Homeownership Day and sign up for Desiree’s class.
Nonprofit Panel
This years nonprofit panel consists of NeighborWorksOC and Affordable Housing OC! Together they are teaching class on finding funds to buy your home. They are focusing on making sure you know how to contact local non profits to help with your down payment in order to purchase your own home. This class is gong to be one of the most helpful and most needed of the ones we are offering. If you have been dreaming of purchasing your own home but aren’t sure how you will ever be able to afford the down payment then this class is perfect for you! These non profit organizations have the tools to help you find the right resource for you to use in order to make your dreams come true.
If you are ready to join us but haven’t registered yet, click here and register! You can find more information on our classes for the 7th annual homeownership day on the website as well. If you have any additional questions Angie can answer them at 949-338-7408.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Orange County Area #2 in Global Relocations
I’ve got to hand it to OCR’s Global Committee, they ALWAYS put on such relevant and informational events. We continually try to support them and keep our CIPS education up to date 🙂 Today was the Global Forum, packed with info on how we can better serve and attract foreign buyers to beautiful Southern California. International buyers are a huge market in SoCal – read on to learn more about taking advantage of this!
Did you know the Orange County & Los Angeles area is the #2 area of interest for international buyers and global relocations?Â
So how can we help international buyers make the most of their money, so they can close easy and afford to pay more for our properties?! One way is MoneyCorp – a unique banking tool international buyers are using to get better exchange rates and guarantee funds. Contact Andrew Graziani to learn about their no-fee / no hassle transactions. They have very small minimums to exchange, and no caps. Furthermore, they have a deep understanding of how to work with every country’s currency, which is not easy. For example, consider Brazil, one currency that bounces around up to 30% in one month, and has a ton of regulations. If you want to protect your foreign transaction, make sure to work with experts like this! There are a ton of landmines when completing a foreign transaction, as noted from our previous Global Forum.
National Economic Forecast by Lawrence Yun
Lawrence Yun is one of the most respected in our industry – as National Association of Realtors’ Chief Economist for the last 10 years… when he speaks.. we listen 🙂 Let’s start with the local picture:
Is Orange County in a Real Estate Bubble?Â
Of course, the first thing everyone wonders is ‘are we in a bubble?’ One recent thing to note is the housing market has not been increasing as the job market increases, which is a bit of a bummer. Regardless, Mr Yun doesn’t see any kind of extreme correction on the horizon. Home prices are 3.5x higher since 1995. Lawrence, like the other experts at the recent WCR Economic Throwdown, doesn’t believe there is a bubble. SO STOP WORRYING :))
Seriously, don’t worry, but do always be on the lookout for risks or warning signs of a market shift
- International trade wars
- Rising rates and inverted yield curve
- Shift to snowballing pessimism (perception is reality!)
We have nothing to fear but fear itself – Franklin Roosevelt
What about Interest Rates?
We are on a permanent track to increase rates, so our advice to International buyers is buyer sooner than later, the rates will only rise.
The Global Real Estate Market
Exchange rate, political environment, and comparative price appreciation are all factors that affect our foreign buyers. At this point in time, the US currency conversion is high, so we saw less foreign buyers in 2018 than in 2017. That said, we still have PLENTY of international buyers, and that is not expected to change soon, only increase. Foreigners still love to buy in the United States, overall it’s considered it very safe and secure here.
Global Committee chair Spencer Hoo introduces 2018 Global Forum speakers
As financing, exchange rates, inventory, and immigration laws all improve, we can expect more and more foreign transactions. Currently, here’s the top 5 countries buying US homes:
- China
- Canada
- Mexico
- India
- United Kingdom
19% go to Florida, and 14% come here to California!
More expectations for the US market:
- Short term uncertainty but long term solid pent-up demand
- Next 3 years of home sales…..booooorrrrrrring. No real increases or decreases
- Flat & even real estate market
If you’d like a consultation to make sure your home is attractive to the foreign buyer pool as our market softens a bit, just give Angie a call, text 949-338-7408, or WeChat.
Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )Vow2Save – helping newlyweds afford a home!
Our First Vow2Save Bride!
Our friend, Angela, was our first bride to use Vow2Save for her wedding website and to help her crowdfund a down payment for their future home. She helped us perfect our site and we are so proud to say she has now been preapproved to buy a home with her new husband! We truly believe in our Vow2Save program and know it will help many newlyweds afford their first home and be able to purchase sooner than they thought they would. We took sometime to interview Angela about her Vow2Save experience so we could share more with you all.
Wedding Website
When you use Vow2Save you are able to customize your website and make it your own. This allows it to double as your registry site and a wedding website with all the information on your wedding and reception. When asking Angela if making her Vow2Save site (happygrahamily) was easy, she told us there are so many options for customizations and edits, but it is clear you don’t have to use every feature. She says this made it easy and simple. Having a liaison that answers any and all questions she had and that helped her edit her site, was one of the best parts. Her site was up in less than a day but she could make changes as often as she wanted or needed. She plans to have the site up for awhile after the wedding for people to reminisce.
Angela’s homepage on her Vow2Save site! Customized exactly to her wants and needs. It’s so easy to make it your own.
Crowdfunding a down payment
The main purpose behind Vow2Save is for newlyweds to be able to crowdfund their down payment instead of receive wedding gifts. Instead of the typical pizza oven or blender, brides and grooms are able to purchase a home with their wedding gifts. We use PayPal to transfer money from the Vow2Save site into your own bank account. We asked Angela how hard it was for her to get the money from the site to her bank account and she told us it was easier than tying shoes! The hardest part of the whole thing is setting up your PayPal account if you don’t already have one, which is super easy! Within 1-2 days of a donation being made you are able to transfer it from PayPal to your bank account! We also let everyone know of the transfer fee on the Vow2Save donation page so that people can choose to cover that fee on top of their donation so it doesn’t come out of their actual donation amount.
PRE-APPROVED TO BUY A HOME!
Angela and her groom Rick got married on October 13th and are already approved to buy their home thanks to Vow2Save and their family and friends donations! They were able to get preapproved because the bank saw the significant amount of money they had saved in their account for a down payment. Angela says thanks to Vow2Save and their donations they were able to get preapproved and (soon) will be able to purchase a home much quicker than they would have without it. Vow2Save helped her put a big chunk of cash into her bank account to help her with the preapproval process. Most newlyweds aren’t able to purchase a home right away and spend many years throwing away money in rent but because of Vow2Save more couples will be able to skip renting and purchase their home right away to begin their marriage just like Angela and Rick. We can’t wait to share with you when they choose the perfect home for them!
If you are engaged or know someone who is and you want this to be their reality sign up on Vow2Save! You can also fill out the form below for more information or contact Angie at 949-338-7408.
Orange County Real Estate Success 