Reader, California's top brokerages and the latest market trends.
 
 
 
 

 Your first tuesday real estate news

Week of February 9, 2015

 
 
     
 
Feature

California's top 60 brokers

A list of California's largest brokerages in 2014.

 
 
     
 
Market trends

How to time the market

The high yield spread and low home sales volume signals a slow market in 2015.

 
 
     
 

Poll  Vote on it

In commercial transactions, what has your experience been with tenants and utilities in gathering AB 1103 energy disclosure data?

 
 
     
 
Real estate tech

A website for every agent - how to get started

Learn how to start building your own agent website.

 
 
 
 
Market trends

California's declining homeownership rate

California's homeownership rate continued to drop in Q4 2014.

 
 
 
Economics

Is suburbia making a comeback?

New data suggests homebuyers are opting for the suburbs.

 
 
 
 
Market trends

One-person households on the rise

More singles are taking on homeownership in today's market.

 
 
 
 
Poll  Renew now

Enroll in our 45-hour package #603: Landlords, Tenants and Property Management to fulfill your renewal requirements and keep updated on all aspects of landlord-tenant law. You'll learn everything you need to know to manage property successfully. Sign up online or call 951.781.7300.

 
 
     
 
market trends

The 20% solution: personal savings rates and homeownership

The personal savings rate rose slightly in Q4 2014 but remains low.

 
 
 
 
Finance

FHA eliminates prepayment interest charges

A new regulation that protects borrowers from prepayment interest.

 
 
 
 
Market trends

The rising trend in California construction starts

SFR construction starts fell while multi-family construction starts continued to climb during the second half of 2014.

 
 
 
 
Finance

FHA updates pre-foreclosure sale and deeds-in-lieu requirements

New FHA regulations for pre-foreclosure transactions.

 
 
 
 
Poll  Comment of the week

"It’s what they didn’t say in the grade-school video that’s interesting. Like Coca Cola, their black box formula, which they refer to by their scientific-sounding “algorithms,” contains what no one outside of their tight cadre knows. We can’t tell you, they say, to insure no one games the system. Uh-huh.

We’ve heard stories, and who hasn’t, that their “algorithms” include down rating you for your buying history that they just might not approve of, or spending “habits” they can aggregate like an accusatory prosecutor. Remember, anything they can down-rate you for means more money for their clients, the banks who charge more can be more profitable, with interest rates for credit cards, mortgages, auto loans, and the list goes on. [...]

The real surprise is that the FICOs of the world have been extremely successful in selling their blackbox scores to every private company, every money-related entity, every government bureaucracy. Everyone. They've convinced prospective employers that you may be a bad person unless your FICO is XXX. Pretty soon, even God will demand your FICO score at the Gates, you loser."

- Jason, on How FICO credit scores work