Wednesday, August 20, 2008

50% Off Peak For Stockton & Modesto Metros; Merced Down Nearly 60%

From the Modesto Bee:

This spring, median-income families could afford about half the homes sold in Stanislaus, Merced and San Joaquin counties. Compare that with three years ago, when the region's families could afford only about 3 percent of the homes sold. That's the upside of the housing downturn.

The downside is that home prices keep declining: July's median sales price plummeted to $190,000 in Stanislaus County. That's less than half what houses were selling for in December 2005, when prices peaked at $396,000.
...
San Joaquin's median sales price fell to $220,500 in July [down 51.2% from the $451,500 peak]. Merced's median fell to $155,000 [down -59.5% from the $382,750 peak].
From the Sacramento Business Journal:
The sharp fall in median home price in Greater Sacramento has helped drive up affordability....About 55.7 percent of all homes for sale in the four-county metro area were priced so that a family making the median income in the region could afford them, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index. That was the highest affordability rating among any California market in the study, and was even better than the U.S. figure of 55 percent for the second quarter of 2008.
From the Appeal Democrat:
In Yuba County, sales in July climbed 43.3 percent above a year earlier. The $183,500 median price was down 33 percent from the same period last year. In Sutter County, sales jumped almost 26 percent while prices were off 30 percent from July 2007, at $203,000.
From the Sacramento Bee:
The cosmetic surgery industry is in need of a lift. Soaring unemployment, high gas prices and the mortgage crisis have left consumers with less discretionary income. For plastic surgeons, that means fewer patients are coming in for elective procedures.
...
"Now financing (companies) are becoming more difficult in who they approve," said [Dr. Shahriar] Mabourakh [of the Folsom Plastic Surgery & Laser Center]. The Folsom doctor started seeing a decrease in calls from prospective patients in December.

15 comments:

Raj C. said...

That's a lot of tough news to handle. Except for the plastic surgery part, it's hard for me to feel bad for someone who gets into that kind of business.

Jacob said...

Did anyone see the skip on the plastic surgery problems on The Daily Show, must have been over a month ago, very funny.

So does this "affordability" stat take into account everyones ability to get a loan? If you make $50k a year and want a $150-$200k home you can probably afford it, with or without a full downpayment, but your credit score is 650 and you don't qualify for squat, so now what?

it takes a while to save up that 20%, even if the price is right, you still gotta have the cash.

Anonymous said...

plastic surgeons need more work? hmm, maybe they can offer to do some "lipstick-on-a-pig" facelifts for all the trashed foreclosures?!

that oughtta keep 'em current on the mercedes, boat & child support payments . . .

bubblemachine said...

The downside is that home prices keep declining: July's median sales price plummeted to $190,000 in Stanislaus County.

Why is a declining median sales price a bad thing when many median income families still can not afford to buy a home?

These newspaper reporters are pathetic. They don't have a clue.

The only downside is for the fools who purchased McMansions in December 2005, when prices peaked at $396,000.

patient renter said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
patient renter said...

These affordability reports are an absolute joke, something any reporter worth their pen would point out. Maybe I should buy some stock in pens.

On what planet is it a good idea for a person or family making around 50k to buy a home around 250k? That's 5 times their gross income! Affordable it most certainly is not. It would be nice if journalists would stop shilling for the industry and put some critical analysis into their reporting... or is that too quaint a concept nowadays?

HousingRealist said...

Patient Renter - the price is 150k and 50K should be able to afford that.

Wadin' In said...

If I recall correctly, the NAR changed the formula for affordability 2 years ago. It formally was 20% down, with a 30-year fixed rate loan. Today, it is 10% down, with a 5/25 ARM. What a laugher. The MSM never goes beyond the dribble to get to the real meat.

patient renter said...

HousingRealist - I wish it was so. From the article:

Fifty-seven percent of Sacramento-area households could afford an entry-level home (valued at $254,550) in the second quarter

Jacob said...

San Joaquin's median is $155k. Sac has a bit more to go.

But Sac is way more special. Let's see we have... um... State jobs (well there is that hiring freeze and the threat of getting paid less than Ca minimum wage)...

Hmm... Well... We have several Star Bucks and Wal-Marts to work at...

We have a casino right next to a garbage dump... Really high class...

Actually I got nothing... No clue as to why anyone, buyers, investors, banks, builders, ever thought homes would be worth close to or over a million bucks here...

patient renter said...

If I recall correctly, the NAR changed the formula for affordability 2 years ago.

Yep, at least the CAR did. It would be nice if the media would mention this in their reporting.

STOP ROSEVILLE CRIME said...

The other shoe still hasn't fallen yet. Once Fannie and Freddie trade at $0 by Labor Day we'll see a little short term stability in the credit markets.

I wonder how affordable a home is at any price when someone without a job is trying to buy it.

Jacob, don't forget we have the State Fair too.

mopar777 said...

I have a (girl)friend that is really, really cute. Too bad her looks don't match her brains.
She got some cosmetic surgery on the HELOC account. Her and her husband also got into some bad flips and now they are in financial hot water. She's working 2-3 jobs now and eating alot to relieve the stress. It really dissappoints me to see her gain so much weight and wipe out the effects of the liposuction.

Stuck in SF said...

Take a look at what Sam Zell is saying

Stuck in SF said...

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aNplg30MvTi4&refer=home