PROPOSITION 8 — PROPERTY TAX RELIEF FOR HOMES THAT HAVE DROPPED IN VALUE
Proposition 8 –Property Tax Relief
California homeowners may or may not be aware of Proposition 8.
In 1978 California voters passed this constitutional amendment that allows a temporary reduction in the assessed value of their property when that property suffers a decline in current market value.
When, on January 1 of each year, the market value of a property falls below the assessed value, the assessor is obligated to review the property and enroll the lesser of the two values. If it is determined that the market value of the property at that time is less than the assessed value your property’s assessed value will be adjusted to the level of its current market value. This will result in a reduction of your property tax for that year.
To apply, contact your county assessor’s office. Some counties require the tax payer to complete a form requesting participation in the Proposition 8 outlined process, others will include you in the program based on information that you provide on the telephone.
Some counties have programs in place that review properties based on the purchase date. It is wise to contact them and ensure that your home is in the program. For more data go to:
http://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/assessors/htm .
SCAM ALERT—NO FEE NECESSARY FOR THE VALUE REDUCTION
There is no reason to pay for a review that is required by law and will be performed FREE! Various private companies send mailings to property owners offering their services to pursue a reduction in the owner’s property taxes. These companies may charge hundreds of dollars to file for a reduction in value on behalf of the property owner. Some companies even impose late fees if the application is received after an arbitrary deadline. Homeowners do not need the services of a private firm to seek a property tax reduction. State law requires county assessors to review all requests for property value reduction for FREE! |
Note that the reduction is not permanent. Each year on January 1 participating properties will be reviewed until their values return to the former Proposition 13 values.
If you do not agree with the assessor’s findings you may file a formal appeal with the County Assessment Appeals Board or the County Board of Equalization. These boards are independent bodies established to resolve differences in property value opinions between the county assessor and property owners.
For more information go to:
http://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/pdf/filingperiods.pdf
NATIONAL MORTGAGE DELINQUENCIES FOR THE 4th QUARTER OF 2009
The Mortgage Banker’s Association has released the National Mortgage Delinquency statistics for the forth quarter of 2009. As expected, the numbers continue to raise. The following chart prepared by the Distressed Property Institute reveals these statistics. They break them down by type of mortgage and status within the foreclosure process.
The first stage is when the loan is in default, meaning that the loan payment is more than 30 days late. The second stage is in Foreclosure, meaning that the bank has taken the property back and they now own the property.
The chart also shows the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate, both of which have a direct impact on the delinquencies now and in the future.
As a mamber of the CDPE organization, I agree that we want the public to be aware of the current market conditions. Feel free to call if you have any questions.
HOW CAN I AVOID FORECLOSURE? WHERE CAN I GET HELP? Part 1
How Do I Avoid Foreclosure:
A step by step process for distressed homeowners.
Part 1
“O.K., I’m in trouble, real financial trouble. Due to circumstances beyond my control I can’t pay my bills. The mortgage is due and I can’t come close to covering the payment. What can I do”?
Unfortunately this scenario is playing out with thousands of home owners in our country today. In fact, one in ten mortgages throughout the country are in trouble with even more headed in that direction.
Unemployment is at 10.2% and underemployment is at 20% in California. Many of the wild west mortgages of the past few years are due to adjust, making the payments impossible to make for an ever growing number of borrowers.
Homeowners need help in the form of information and education. Unfortunately, this is such an emotionally devastating situation many people shut down and do nothing. The cold hard truth is that doing nothing is a sure fire formula for losing their home to foreclosure.
And foreclosure is not just a one time event. Once a foreclosure is on you credit record it stays there for seven to ten years, making it difficult to obtain any kind of financing (home, auto, credit card, store card). Those in this situation that do obtain credit are looking at interest rates well into the double digits. People should do EVERYTHING POSSIBLE to avoid foreclosure.
We have to get the word out family, friends and neighbors that there are options available to them to increase their chances of avoiding foreclosure. The thing is that they have to take action.
There are many organizations available and willing to help without charging a fee. Unfortunately, there are also far too many who will take advantage: fraud is rampant.
The bottom line is that the distressed homeowner has to take action and be careful not to let an individual or organization taken advantage of them.
Contacting the lien holder and discussing your situation honestly is absolutely necessary. However, before doing that there are a few steps to take first.
Take some time to learn what all your options are first. This information is available in many 
places.
Here are a few web sites:
http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/hud/topics/avoiding_foreclosure
http://www.ForeclosureStopper.org
In future posts we will discuss these options to provide the information people need to make an informed decision. Those posts will be coming soon.
Feel free to contact Mike West, Realtor, CDPE if you have any questions or need help.
(916) 337-0658 e-mail: Mike@BMikeWest.com
REAL ESTATE SALES DATA FOR THE PAST 15 MONTHS FOR FOLSOM, CA
In out attempt to provide the latest and most detailed real estate sales information, we are pleased to present the sales information for Folsom, CA. THis data pertains to single family homes only.
This graph lists the cost-per-square-foot for ALL homes sold in Folsom, CA for the months indicated. The trend shows a decline in the earlier months and a leveling off for the last eight or nine months.
This graph shows available inventory. A six month inventory is considered an neutral market. Anything less than a six month inventory is considered a seller’s market. Folsom inventories are very low during the reported period.
This graph shows the average asking price in green and the average selling price in red. Homes consistently selling for less than the asking price.
This graph shows that average the average days-on-market and the selling price aompared the the asking price.
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about the data provided.
THE VERY BEST REAL ESTATE PROPERTY SEARCH TOOL ON THE INTERNET
Welcome to the very best real estate property search tool on the Internet. We have recently changed our web site provider. Although this new site is in its infancy, the real estate property search functions were the first to be put in place and are the most robust available in the market today.
Best of all, we have made the functionality available to everyone without the necessity of having to register. You
don’t have to put in your name, your e-mail address or phone number. Just come to the site and search away!
There are three search functions available. The quick search is located in the middle of the home page. Fill in the blanks and find EVERY piece of real estate available in the Realtor’s MLS in our seven county area.
You can perform a more focused search by selecting the SEARCH PROPERTIES page. Select the county you are interested in and enter your specific criteria. You can search for only short sale properties or REO (Bank Owned foreclosure homes) or you can eliminate short sales all together. You can even search by location in the map search mode. Once you have performed your first search, back out, change the search criteria and perform another search. You will be surprised at the different results you get.
Finally, you can set up an e-mail search notification through which you will be notified by e-mail the very day an new property that meets your search criteria comes on to the market. On the home page select the NEW LISTINGS NOTIFICATIONS page. Complete the notification information so that the system knows where to send the requested information. Set up your search criteria, sit back and wait for each new notification.
Any time you find any real estate that peaks your interest, let us know. We will investigate it thoroughly and get you all of the pertinent data; length of time on the market, actual market value, similar sales in the area, what the seller paid for the property, seller’s existing financing and anything else you may need to make an informed decision about making offer and for how much. In most cases we can also help you with the needed financing.
Enjoy your search!