The Solano County 2016 Spring Housing Market

Selling Your Northern California Home? Get a free home value report 

Buying a Northern California Home? Search all homes for sale

What does the 2016 spring market look like in Solano County? Let’s break it down by town!

• First of all, in Vacaville, there are less than 100 available listings. There’s 99 homes for sale right now. The average price is $394,000. That’s up by 8.5% year over year. We have less than one month worth of inventory overall.
• Fairfield has 140 available listings at about 1.1 months of inventory. $405,000 is the average sales price. The appreciation rate rests at 9.6% year over year.
• In Vallejo, there are 113 listings available. That’s 1.1 months of inventory. $388,000 has been the average sales price over the last year. The city experiences 12.2% appreciation year over year.
• Benicia has only 33 available listings right now with an average sales price of $581,000. There’s also a 7.9% appreciation rate year over year, alongside 1.4 months of inventory.
• In Dixon, there are only 10 homes on the market! That’s only 0.6 months worth of inventory. The apprentice rate is 4.8%. The average sales price is $353,000.
• Suisun has only 19 homes on the market at $315,000 average sales price. Again, this is only about 0.6 months worth of inventory. There’s also a 7.3% appreciation year over year.

Any market with less than six months worth of inventory significantly favors sellers. For instance, homes fly off the market in places with less than a month’s worth of inventory. Any market greater than seven months favors buyers. However, the in-between market, with about six or seven months worth, is considered a balanced and neutral market. In the busier markets, homes receive an average of seven offers and sell well above asking price.

“

There hasn’t been a better time to sell.

”

As a buyer, you need a qualified agent to represent your best interests and understands the seller’s motivation. That person is key for negotiating, for instance. If you can’t compete with the highest price, compete on your terms. That could be meaning avoiding all possible contingencies or maybe even a rent-free rent back.

Meanwhile, if you’re a seller, it’s not as simple as putting a sign in the yard and listing your property for sale. This process requires diligent marketing. Plus, you don’t want your home to sit on the market and have to resort to price reductions. However, there hasn’t been a better time to sell. I’ve never seen a market like this and you definitely don’t want to miss out! I don’t see appreciations sustaining for too long.

If you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in the surrounding area, reach out by phone or email. Stats, like the exact number of homes on the market, changes daily. For the most accurate and up to date info, contact The Andrew Lamb Team. We’d be happy to answer any real estate questions you might have!

Thinking of Going Solar?

Selling Your Northern California Home? Get a free home value report 

Buying a Northern California Home? Search all homes for sale

Today I have Rick Davis with Revolve Solar here to talk about the fast-growing market for solar energy in California and how investing in it could add value to your home.

Rick Davis is the Chief Strategy Officer and EVP of Business development at Revolve Solar, and he's going to answer some common questions that we get from clients about solar.
 
There has been quite a rush lately to install solar panels because tax credits offered for getting panels are set to expire soon. While there is no set amount of money that you'll be able to save, Revolve Solar tries their best to analyze your situation in order to have you be cash flow positive immediately.

You can make money off of installing panels by selling it back to the power grid. Essentially, if you use less energy than you're creating, you'll be able to sell it back to the solar company that you're using.
California is a state that's especially good for homeowners that are using solar energy because of the net metering policies that exist. It's common to produce more energy than you need, and you'll be credited for extra energy that you produce.

A solar panel purchase is a very good addition to your home. Essentially, you will not be paying energy bills anymore, and solar panels almost always add value to your home. Just think of it this way: if you were buying a home, would you want one with or without solar panels? The answer is pretty easy.

However, it's not financially feasible to put solar panels on every home. Sometimes a roof will not get enough sunlight, or perhaps the offset of energy costs will not be enough to make the investment.

Revolve Solar can come out and assess whether or not getting solar panels would benefit you. If you would like to learn more, you can visit www.revolvesolar.com to schedule a free consultation. You'll need to provide some data about your utilities, and then someone can come out and speak to you regarding the feasibility of getting solar power on your home.

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me!

Why Is Now the Time to List Your Northern California Home?

Selling Your Northern California Home? Get a free home value report 

Buying a Northern California Home? Search all homes for sale

The May numbers are in, so it's time for another update on the Northern California marketplace.

Just about every home that is in great condition is receiving multiple offers, which is great news for sellers. Buyers, on the other hand, are often having to compete with a handful of other offers. It's a wild market, but we can help. We have the strategies to help you win the home of your dreams without having to overspend. For instance, it's important to realize that price isn't the only thing that matters when submitting an offer.

Inventory is down 30% in the last 6 months or so. We have less homes on the market now than we did in November, which is usually a dead time for home sales, so that says a lot about the volume of buyers in our market. If you or someone you know has considered selling, now is the time to get top dollar for your home and sell quickly! 

 
Also worth considering: all major interest rate analysts are predicting rates to rise significantly by 2016. NAR, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and MBA all predicate that rates will be near 5% by the second quarter of 2016! If this busy market wasn't enough to convince you now is the time to move, rising rates should! Your affordability will take a hit if you decide to wait, plain and simple.

If you want more detailed information about where our market is heading, or if you have any questions about real estate, give us a call or shoot us an email. We would love to give you a hand!

Could Waiting to Sell Your Northern California Home Cost You?

Selling Your Northern California Home? Get a free home value report
Buying a Northern California Home? Search all homes for sale

With the spring selling season just around the corner, many homeowners plan on waiting to list their home until buyers have flooded the marketplace. Today, we share 5 reasons why it's NOT a good idea to wait to sell your home:

1. Demand is strong: According to the numbers, foot traffic is currently the highest it has been in the last five months. In fact, a home we recently listed had multiple showings and received multiple offers in the same day! 
2. Competition is going up: As the spring season gets closer, more and more homeowners are going to list their home. With less competition now, you're more likely to get a more favorable value for your home. 
3. The process is quicker: The selling process will be much quicker now. The banks and the lending industry get bogged down in the spring and early summer because there are so many people looking to make a move. Now is a great time to list your home because underwriters, lenders, and bankers aren't getting bombarded by mortgage requests. 
4. Interest rates are low: Rates are expected to rise as high as 5.5% by the end of the year. Putting your home on the market, getting the best price possible for it, and locking in an incredibly low rate for your next property would be the smart thing to do right now! 
5. It's time to move on: What's the reason you've been thinking about selling? Do you want to move closer to family? Are you looking to save money? Have you been wanting to downsize or move up? Whatever it is, now is the time to make a cost-effective move in Northern California. Trust me, you won't regret taking advantage of these great conditions.

 
This spring market is predicted to be one of the hottest of all time. Waiting too long to make your move could cost you money. If you've been on the fence about making your move, the time has come to decide. With conditions as great as they are, I recommend you take advantage while you can!

If you have any questions, or if you would like any real estate assistance of any kind, don't hesitate to reach out to me via phone or email. I would love to hear from you!

Where's the Northern California Market Heading in 2015?

There are many great Northern California area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (707) 500-1787 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Hello everyone and welcome to our video blog! Today, we take a look at market conditions here in Northern California and discuss what they mean for homeowners in our area!

Right now, we're still seeing a seller's market. We only have about 2 months of inventory right now, which means if no other homes were to come onto the market, we would sell all available homes in about 2 months. 

Interest rates, though still low, are expected to rise in the coming months. They are currently hovering around 4%, but are expected to rise to 5% or even 5.5% by the end of the year.

With interest rates slated to rise, now may be the time to sell, as rising interest rates may deter buyers from entering the market. With inventory low and many qualified buyers looking for homes, now is the opportune time to get a great value for your home. 

How does the current inventory affect pricing, you ask? Well, anything under 6 months of inventory is considered a seller's market. With only 1-2 months of inventory currently, your home will likely sell quickly and for more money than it would otherwise.

Real estate experts are expecting the market, especially here in Solano County, to continue its steady rise, at about 5% every year. We've had high, double-digit appreciation here in California over the past few years (67% to be exact). Rapid appreciation continues, but has slowed down a little bit. We expect these solid conditions to continue and the market to remain favorable for the sellers out there.

If you have any questions about the 2015 real estate market, or would like real estate assistance of any kind, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to help you take advantage of these wonderful conditions!