Doug Knows Real Estate
Until a few minutes ago I did not know the word chatbot. Our IT person put aChatbot on my www.dougknowsrealestate.com page. It is interactive and answersresidential real estate questions quickly — wait there’s more. We have asked it questions in English, French and Spanish. So the Chatbot is multilingual. Go to www.dougknowsrealestate.com and give it a try. Please give me some feedback. The AI is still in training. Please let me know if you see an issue.
I tell those who ask about buying in San Jose that now is not the time to buy; but, get ready. It seems like this economic misery has been with us forever but it has only been a short while and ‘this too shall pass’. Nothing in this physical world lasts forever. Gas Prices up. Food Prices up. Mortgage Prices up and real estate prices according to Schiller are probably finally headed down. Buyers need to be prepared to buy because when the real estate market changes it always seems to change fast. When Mortgage Magic opened in San Jose in 1990 the 30 year rate was 10.13 and the median home price was $194,300. Ten years later in…
I am not a fan of San Jose Real Estate prices. As with many large cities the home prices can be way too expensive for most and buying a home seems unreachable. Years ago I lived and worked in Orange County California and my friends had just gotten married and started their careers as attorneys. They lived in a small apartment in Los Angeles but purchased a beautiful condo in Palm Springs (108 miles from LA). They spent each weekend in Palm Springs and that was their Primary Home because it was the only home they owned. The interest rate on a Primary Home purchase is the best rate; better than a second home or an investment property…
Interest rates and home prices are in many ways tied together. When rates go down so many times the home prices go up and when rates climb the home prices will go down. That was not the case when we had stagflation. Stagflation has occurred twice in the U.S., once between 1974 and 1975 and again between 1978 and 1982. All of this happened during a period known as the Great Inflation (1965 to 1982). Stagflation is a condition in which slow economic growth (stagnation), rising prices (inflation), and rising unemployment all happen at the same time. Although it is rare for slow economic growth and high inflation to coexist, it has happened in the past, and many believe…
Well, for an individual buyer the rate is determined by a lot of factors: primary home or investment home, loan size, Loan to Value, credit score, credit history, debt ratio, type of income, job history, job stability, w-2 or 1099 pay, self employed. I am sure there are others I have not listed. The base rate most referred to is the 30 year fixed rate conforming loan. A 15 year conforming loan will be less and a Jumbo Loan will cost more. FHA has its own rates and VA has its own program. There are other programs that develop their own rates. But, aside from these factors where does it all start? Most markets start with the price…
The Wall Street Journal today has a front page article Fed Hikes Don’t Go Far Enough For Some Investors. In the article there is a quote from an analyst “When you’re looking at where deals are pricing, it is simply not that onerous to borrowers”. This analyst wants the Fed to raise rates more. That depends on which side of the fence you are standing on. If you are trying to purchase a home and the interest rates have more than doubled the past two years; that is onerous. If you have credit card debt and live off the credit cards and the Prime rate has gone from 3.25% in March 22 to 8.25% May 23; that is onerous. If…