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April 2010 Benicia & Vallejo Home Sales

Rod Herman — Tue, 18 May 2010 15:06:02 +0000

Curious what that Benicia home down the street sold for last month? Wonder how much your Vallejo neighbor sold his home sold for? Or how long it took a certain Vallejo or Benicia home to sell?

Just download our April Benicia and Vallejo Home Sale Reports for those answers and more. Some highlights from April’s Benicia & Vallejo Home Sale Reports appears below.

Included in each report is every closed sale from April 2010 — including the address, sales price, days-on-market, net price change, and whether the home was a regular or distress sale (short sale or “REO”/foreclosure).

We post our Benicia and Vallejo Home Sale Reports along with other Solano County home sales reports every month, so be sure to visit HomeSection.com regularly. You can also access previous reports by visiting our Home Sales Report Archives page.

Some highlights from April’s BENICIA home sale report:

Highest Price — $690,000 (1433 O’Hare Dr.)
Lowest Price — $68,000 on 900 Southampton Rd. #81)
Total Sales — 34
Distress Sales — 22 (14 REO / 8 Short Sales)
Regular Sales – 12
Total Sold Above Original List Price — 7
Total Sold Below Original List Price — 19
Biggest Net Price Change — $219,999 (940 West K St.)
Longest Time On Market –414 Days (940 West K St.)

Highlights from April’s VALLEJO home sale report:

Highest Price — $397,000 (9280 Hallmark Dr.)
Lowest Price — $27,500 (424 Corcoran Ave. #4)
Total Sales — 143
Distress Sales — 111 (76 REO / 35 Short Sales)
Regular Sales – 32
Total Sold Above Original List Price — 77
Total Sold Below Original List Price — 51
Biggest Net Price Change — $352,000 (279 Catalina Way)
Longest Time On Market –315 Days (114 Roney Ave.)

To see the full report, with home-by-home totals for every Benicia & Vallejo home that closed escrow in Feb. 2010, click on either of the two buttons below.

If you have questions on any of these properties or would like information on what’s currently available, please contact us or visit our Home Search page to search our multiple listing service. We’re always happy to set up customized automated MLS searches for our clients and prospective clients.

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April Solano Home Sales Report: Prices Holding Steady And Up County-Wide Over Last Year

Rod Herman — Wed, 12 May 2010 05:07:23 +0000

April’s home sales numbers are in for Solano County and on a county-wide basis, the median price last month was $200,000 — exactly the same as it was in March.

Vacaville, Vallejo and Suisun all reported median prices that were almost the same as the previous month, while Benicia’s median was way up and Fairfield’s was noticeably down.

The huge jump in Benicia’s median price is probably more a correction of last month’s equally huge drop than an indication that prices are suddenly going through the roof in Benicia.

Keep in mind, too, that Benicia’s relatively small sample size means that a few random sales at either end of the price spectrum can easily skew the numbers.

Meanwhile, the number of sales in Solano was down 10% county-wide, but up in Benicia and Fairfield.

At first glance, the big story seems to be Vallejo’s 28% drop in sales last month — from 198 in March to 143 in April. But before jumping to any conclusions, you have to look back a few months. For April’s total is still the second strongest month of 2010 and close to November’s and December’s totals.

Compared to last April, prices in Solano County are up 14%, led by Vallejo (up 28%) and Suisun (+15%). The number of sales, meanwhile, was down 17% county-wide, mainly due, I suspect, to the smaller inventory of homes on the market this April compared to last April.

You can see all of April’s Solano home sale statistics in detail by downloading April’s Solano County Home Sales Report. Archived copies of previous reports are also available by following the links near the bottom of this post.

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Why There May Be Almost Twice As Much State Tax Credit Money As Everyone Thought

Rod Herman — Tue, 11 May 2010 04:21:15 +0000

As you’ll recall, back on Apr. 15, I wrote that our state association, the California Assn. of Realtors, projected that the state’s new first-time and new-home buyer tax credits might all be gone within a matter of days, once May 1 arrived and eligible buyers started sending in their tax credit paperwork.

Well, it’s still too early to know for sure, but based on ‘early returns,’ CAR’s doom-and-gloom prediction may turn out to be rather exaggerated.

$100 Million Or $175 Million?

All along the state has been saying that only $100 million was allocated to fund the tax credit. But is that really true? Well kinda-sorta.

You see, buyers can only use the credit to offset actual taxes that are owed. Accordingly, some buyers won’t be able to use the full amount of the credit they’re eligible for.

So even though you might qualify for the full $10,000 credit ($3,333/year for three years), if your state taxes are only $1,800/year, then the state only has to give you $5,400. which means that the extra $4,800 they allocated to you can be given to another first-time buyer.

State lawmakers anticipated this when they approved the $100 million tax credit fund. That’s why every first-time home buyer application that’s approved only draws down the fund by 57% of what the applicant qualifies for.

Thus, if you qualify for the maximum credit and your application is approved, your $10,000 allocation only reduces the $100 million fund by $5,700.

If you do the math, that means the state can really continue to accept applications for up to $175 million in first-time buyer credits — or almost twice what everyone thought when the $100 million allocation signed into law by Gov. Schwarzenegger.

You Snooze, You Lose

Another oft-overlooked feature of the tax credit is that all applications must be submitted within 2 weeks of the close of escrow, WITH copies of the fully-signed purchase agreement and final closing statement.

Now, for most first-time buyers I’ve worked with, life becomes very chaotic right after escrow closes. They’re packing, moving, unpacking, and getting kids settled at their new schools.

But if you want the tax credit, in the midst of all of this upheaval, you have to stop what you’re doing and figure out where you put the purchase contract that you signed 6-8 weeks earlier as well as the closing statement you got the day escrow closed.

Or remember to get duplicate copies from your real estate agent. Then, you have to make sure the Franchise Tax Board receives it within two weeks of the date escrow closed.

Not two weeks just to get it postmarked, but two weeks for the state to receive it. So if you pop it in the mail on Day 14, you’re too late.

There are no grace periods and no appeals are allowed. If the FTB says they didn’t get it in time, you lose the credit.

Given how topsy-turvy life becomes for most people in the first few weeks after escrow closes, I have a hard time believing that every first-time buyer who qualifies for the state tax credit will actually submit the required paperwork within the first two weeks after escrow closes.

When you consider that only 1 out of every 5 consumers redeems a rebate they’re eligible for, I wonder how many first-time buyers will actually get their applications in on a timely basis.

I’d be willing to bet that somewhere between 30%-50% of those who are eligible for the credit will miss their two-week window to apply.

Perhaps the state will be more lenient than the law provides or maybe lawmakers will end up removing that 14-day submittal requirement.

If not, I stand by my 30%-50% fallout prediction, which could easily prolong the availability of state monies for eligible buyers.

Keep Track Of How Much Is Left

The Franchise Tax Board’s web site pledges to keep a running total of how much of the $100 million has been spoken for. As of May 4, it had only received 427 applications and had only debited $2.35 million from the fund.

CAR might ultimately be correct and perhaps the fund will indeed dry up very fast. But from where I sit, I think the money may last longer than the number-crunchers predicted.

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Benicia Going Green…But Not For Much Longer

Rod Herman — Sat, 08 May 2010 18:43:02 +0000

Benicia is very green these days, but that’s all about to change…and probably well before the end of May.

No, I’m not talking about the city’s environmental efforts. I’m talking about Benicia’s gorgeous green hills.

Every year the hills in and around Benicia turn green in January and we get to enjoy their emerald beauty for about four or five months. But once the warmer spring weather arrives, it usually takes only a few warm days before the hills turn a golden brown. So by the end of May, the green is always gone.

I snapped these photos a few days ago, when the hills were at their greenest. Enjoy the scenery, because according to the calendar, it’s only a matter of days before the green turns to brown.

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Watch My Benicia Vegetable Garden Grow: Week 2 Update

Rod Herman — Thu, 06 May 2010 21:19:05 +0000

It’s been a little over two weeks since I planted my Benicia vegetable garden. In the past week, some of the tomato plants have grown another 8-10 inches. The little yellow flowers are already starting to appear on some of the plants.

The other veggies — green peppers, pickling cucumbers, green beans, beets, and green onions — also are continuing to grow quite nicely.

So far, no casualties…everything seems to have survived the transplant shock and all the plants seem well on their way to producing what looks to be a bumper crop.

Be sure to check back every week and watch my Benicia vegetable garden grow.

Here’s what I planted: 10 varieties of tomatoes, three kind of bell peppers (2 plants each), green onions, pickling cucumbers, green beans, chioggia beets, and strawberries. And the following herbs: tarragon, sage, oregano, thyme, cilantro, dill, mint, basil and Italian parsley.

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Benicia Open Studios This Weekend

Rod Herman — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 08:02:25 +0000

A big part of Benicia’s charm has always been its thriving art community. And once a year, on the first weekend in May, many of these local artists open their studios to the general public.

Open Studios takes place this Saturday and Sunday, May 1 & 2 throughout Benicia. The event is sponsored by Arts Benicia, a non-profit organization that helps promote and further the arts in town.

This year, over 60 Benicia artists plan to participate and open their studios to the public.

In conjunction with Open Studios event, Arts Benicia’s own gallery (991 Tyler St. #114) will also present a preview exhibit of some of the artists who are participating in the Open Studios event. That’s where you can also pick up a map to the various participating artists’ studios.

For additional information or a list of the artists who will be participating, contact Arts Benicia at 707-747-0131 or visit the Arts Benicia web site.

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Spring FINALLY Arrived In Benicia Today

Rod Herman — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 04:44:20 +0000

In my book, Spring doesn’t really officially begin in Benicia until the Farmer’s Market opens. So that means today was the first day of Spring, at least here in Benicia that is.

And it wouldn’t be opening day of the Benicia’s Farmer’s Market without a few April showers.

So right on cue, about 10 minutes before the market was scheduled to open for the season, the skies suddenly darkened and rain started to fall.

Fortunately, though, it was just a brief shower and by the time I got down there around 4:30, there were just scattered clouds.

For me, opening day at the Farmer’s Market is always a special day.

It’s great to see all those familiar faces again — farmers and food purveyors who have become household fixtures on First Street after all these years.

And what a delight to feast your eyes and tastebuds on all those, colorful, mouthwatering fruits and vegetables.

There’s really nothing like that great Thursday afternoon downtown Benicia vibe when the market is here. It’s a vibe that’s been sorely missed since the market closed down last October.

It was great to see the rotisserie chicken truck back this year, too. It was here three years ago, but skipped the Benicia market in ‘08 and ‘09.

The purveyors said they’re going to see how it goes for the next few weeks. Hopefully, they’ll get plenty of business and remain a Thursday afternoon mainstay all season long.

I already had plans for this evening, but next Thursday I already know what’s for dinner: a freshly roasted juicy Roli Roti chicken.

I also heard that another former long-time market regular — the folks at All-Star Tamales — may be returning again this year, too.

Hopefully that’s more than just a rumor, as they always made the best tamales around in my book.

They weren’t at the market this week, but I’m hoping they make a return appearance real soon. I’m having chicken next week, but I sure wouldn’t mind tamales the following week!

Today, I picked up some beautiful red onions, freshly hulled organic English peas, a 3-pack of luscious strawberries, a big bag of juicy oranges, ripe red tomatoes from my favorite farmers. And a bag of freshly-popped kettle corn for my grandson.

I try to make it to the Farmer’s Market every week. It’s become a Thursday afternoon tradition.

Not to mention the official beginning of springtime in Benicia.

The Benicia Farmer’s Market is organized by the Benicia Main Street Program and takes place every Thursday from 4-8 pm through the end of October.

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Solano Home Buyers Get 2-Month Extension On 3.5% Fannie Mae Closing Cost Credit

Rod Herman — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 03:12:26 +0000

Non-Investors Who Buy A Fannie Mae Repo Can Still Get The Credit If They Close By June 30

In what amounts to an unexpected gift to buyers of Fannie Mae bank-owned homes in Solano County, the secondary mortgage market giant just announced that its 3.5% closing cost credit incentive program, which was scheduled to end Apr. 30, has been extended to June 30.

So if you buy one of the 96 Fannie Mae-owned homes in Solano County that are either presently for sale or about to come on the market and can close escrow in the next two months, you could be eligible for up to 3.5% in credits at close of escrow.

Of the 96 homes for sale in Solano, 89 are currently on the market and 7 will be coming on the market soon.

Almost half of Fannie’s unsold Solano County inventory is in Vallejo (40 homes), followed by Fairfield (29), Vacaville (15), Suisun City (6), and Benicia (3).

The 3.5% incentive can either be used to offset closing costs, for Whirlpool appliances or a combination of the two. Only owner-occupants are eligible. And since some loan programs limit the maximum amount of closing costs a buyer may receive (FHA, for example, caps it at 3%), the credit is for “up to” 3.5%.

Even though Fannie’s incentive program has been extended, time is definitely of the essence, as escrow must close by June 30 in order for buyers to receive the credit.

And since most escrows take 30-45 days, that doesn’t allow a huge amount of time to find the right home, get the contract accepted and then close escrow.

For more information on homes in Solano County that qualify for Fannie Mae’s 3.5% incentive program, if you’re not already working with another real estate agent, feel free to contact us and we’ll be glad to assist you.

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Solano Pending Home Sales Up, Inventory Down As Tax Credit Draws To A Close

Rod Herman — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 07:27:53 +0000

Whether it’s due to the impending federal tax credit deadline or just the normal spring real estate market surge, home sale activity has definitely picked up in recent weeks in Solano County, which in turn has caused the supply of homes for sale to drop.

This past week marks the first time all year that all five cities in our Solano County market area have seen their inventory of homes decline in the same week.

Vallejo (-20) and Fairfield (-24) both experienced double-digit drops in their housing supply, while the other three cities saw a nominal decrease (Benicia & Fairfield -4 and Suisun -2).

Yet, even that is a significant change from what occurred earlier this year.

For most of the first three months, the inventory increased throughout the county. But in the last few weeks we’ve seen it starting to drop here and there.

For the year, it’s still higher than it was in January in all five cities. Vallejo leads the way with a 46% year-to-date increase. But as recently as April 5, it was up 58% for the year. So as you can see, the inventory has begun to soften.

But the even bigger news in Solano this week is the recent spike in pending sales, which should also foretell a big increase in the number of closed sales for May in June.

Most of the cities in our Solano market area have approached year-to-date highs in pending sales over the past two weeks. This past week, every city except Suisun reported pending sales well above its YTD average.

For example:

Benicia had its fourth highest total of the year last week with 8 pending sales; its YTD average is 5.7.

Vallejo had its second highest total of 2010 last week and its fourth highest total the week before. Last week’s 55 pending sales far eclipsed its 41.4 sales/week average.

Fairfield had its 4th highest total of the year last week and its 3rd highest the week before. There were 41 sales last week, almost 20% above its 33.4/wk average.

Vacaville hit its high water mark last week (35 sales). That’s 40% above its 21.2./week average.

My hunch is that part of the spike in new sales is due to the urgency for many first-time buyers to get into contract by the end of April so they can take advantage of the federal tax credit.

In order to qualify for the credit, buyers must have a ratified contract by Apr. 30 and close escrow by June 30.

We track the weekly home sales statistics for the five cities in our Solano County market area and publish the weekly report periodically, whenever there are notable trends or statistics.

You can download this week’s Solano County Home Sales Report and see week-by-week home sales and housing supply totals for Benicia, Vallejo, Fairfield, Suisun and Vacaville.

To search for homes in our market area, be sure to visit our Home Search page. You can set up customized home searches and receive results automatically in your email inbox. For additional information or to see any of these homes, please contact us.

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Watch My Benicia Vegetable Garden Grow: Week 1 Update

Rod Herman — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 05:41:02 +0000

Last week I wrote a post about my newly planted home garden here in Benicia. I’ll be posting weekly updates for those who like to live vicariously and want to watch my garden grow.

For the record, I’ve planted 10 varieties of tomatoes, three kind of bell peppers (2 plants each), green onions, pickling cucumbers, green beans, chioggia beets, and strawberries. And the following herbs: tarragon, sage, oregano, thyme, cilantro, dill, mint, basil and Italian parsley.

Some of the tomato plants have already grown about 4-6 inches, so I figured I’d better get the tomato cages in place before they get too big. All the plants seem to have made it through transplanting — no casualties so far!

Here are some more photos at the end of Week One.

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