With the change in market conditions my clients are asking me a lot of questions while we're out looking at property in Big Bear.  I've compiled a list of some of the most frequently asked questions and thought I would go over them in this blog. •1)      What is going to be required to write an offer on a property in Big Bear? Whether it is a bank owned. REO property or privately owned, you are going to need the following if you want your offer to be taken seriously.  In today's market where money is tight, the first thing you'll need to do is to be able to put at least 20% down.  Besides a good down payment, you should bring your pre approval letter with you when you write the offer.  Besides being able to prove that you're qualified and you have the down payment, you should expect to... 12/22/2008

Winter has arrived and you're now driving to work on rain slick roads.  You look up snow caped mountains of Big Bear and you wish you up there snow boarding at Bear Mountain or sking at Snow Summit.  The traffic isn't moving and you're going to be late for work, so you call in sick and head to the mountains.  As you head up Hwy 38, you check with the local radio station and hear that chains are required.  Is the chain restriction an R-1, R-2, or R-3? There are three different chain restrictions that you should know about.  They are refered to R-1. R-2. and R-3.  Below is the defintions of each provided by Cal Trans. R-1 Chains are required on all vehicles except passenger vehicles and light-duty trucks under 6,000 pounds gross weight and equipped with snow tires on at least two drive wh... 12/17/2008

Moonridge Area of Big Bear Lake market information. If you would like to discuss market trends and information about Big Bear Real Estate, please fill free to give me a call. Steve Hirschler Associate, The Tim Wood Group Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery 42153 Big Bear Blvd. P.O. BOX 6820 Big Bear Lake, CA 92315 stevehirschler@gmail.com 909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889 Fax 909 866-3531 http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com     Subscribe to the Big Bear Real Estate Blog 12/16/2008

Moonridge Area of Big Bear Lake market information. If you would like to discuss market trends and information about Big Bear Real Estate, please fill free to give me a call. Steve Hirschler Associate, The Tim Wood Group Coldwell Banker Mountain Gallery 42153 Big Bear Blvd. P.O. BOX 6820 Big Bear Lake, CA 92315 stevehirschler@gmail.com 909 866-3481 EXT. 217 CELL 909 725-5889 Fax 909 866-3531 http://www.stevesellsbigbear.com     Subscribe to the Big Bear Real Estate Blog 12/16/2008

  As I sit in the office this morning where it is warm and dry, I know that just outside the building we are experiencing blizzard conditions.  The much anticipated storm has arrived in Big Bear and the snow is falling faster than it can be cleared.  It goes without saying that with all of this snow falling, there are going to be plenty of accidents on the roads, and plenty of frozen pipes.  As you think about your little cabin in Big Bear, ask yourself this question.  Did I winterize the cabin before I left it after my last visit?    Let's hope that the answer is yes.  If you forgot to winterize the cabin, you could have broken pipes and water damage when you come back to Big Bear. Every time I sell a cabin in Big Bear, I talk to my clients about the winterizing process.  I don't go i... 12/15/2008

How many overpriced homes have sold lately in your neighborhood? Are there a many people buying houses in your home town just because the agent had stupendous marketing? I am not going to try to over analyze a simple topic There is a common denominator with all homes that are currently selling.... they are priced at or below market value. They are priced like the bank owned and short sale listings. They compete with the best values in the market. No amount of marketing will sell an overpriced house. None of the gimmicks, no talking signs, no flashing lights, no open houses, not even a higher commission to the selling agent. In today's market, it is all about the price. If the price is wrong, you loose. The single most important item in determining if your house sells is the price. Don't... 12/13/2008

After spending time with your Realtor in Big Bear looking at property,  You find what you were looking for.  Your Realtor takes you to a perfect 3 bedroom, 2 bath cabin backing to the ski slopes in your price range.  You and the wife fall in love with it, so you make an offer. A few days after writing the offer, you are informed that the sellers accepted your offer and it is now time to open escrow. Whenever you buy a home, in Big Bear or anywhere else for that matter, you're going to find out that many trees have lost their lives because of the volume of paper that is sent back and forth throughout the transaction.  Nine out of ten homes have at least one computer in the house and email is used as the preferred method of communication.  A lot of the paperwork is now sent electronicall... 12/13/2008

I have seen a shift in buyer behavior over the past 6 months. It really should be expected with the market conditions, media coverage and increasing numbers of bank owned and distressed properties. The shift in behaviour is the lack of trust and confidence in their agent. They seem to think that we are trying to pull one over on them, even when we have shown them the best inventory available. In the past 6 month I have had no less than 7 buyers miss the house that was the best fit. This happened because they wanted to either place a ridiculously low offer, or over analyze the property until it was picked up from the buyer that had already gone through this routine. Buyers in the Big Bear market are coming from areas that have higher percentages of bank owned properties than Big Bear. Th... 12/12/2008

When you priced your cabin in Big Bear for sale in 2004, you didn't have to be too concerned with the value that you placed on your cabin.  The market was a very strong sellers market and everything sold.  If you over priced your cabin, it would take a little while longer to sell, but you could be confident that it would sell. That market is gone and we now live in a strong buyers market.  With the prices of cabins in Big Bear falling as fast as the price of a gallon of gasoline, the value that you place on your cabin is much more important than it ever was.  You used to have to compete with your neighbors who were also selling their cabin.  In today's market, you are not only competing with your neighbor, you are also competing with the bank owned, or REO properties and Short Sales. Ob... 12/08/2008

Summary Report For Residential Closings Last Month   TotalSold Average List Price Median List Price Lowest List Price Highest List Price Ave $ (SP) Per sq. ft. 49 $360,722 $259,900 $99,900 $1,795,000    $189.18             Price         Differential Average Sold Price Median Sold Price Lowest Sold Price Highest Sold Price Average DOM 92.27% $334,034 $250,000 $90,000 $1,600,000         156     · PROPERTY INVENTORY: Stable Buyer's Market      · TRENDS IN MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES: Stable · CURRENT MARKET CONDITIONS: Distressed · VALUES HAVE:  Decreased 20% over the past 2 years · NUMBER OF PROPERTIES SOLD LAST MONTH:57 ( 3.5% of Market)   12/04/2008

         The Big Bear Report A Monthly Review of The Big Bear Real Estate Market by Big Bear's Leading Realtor® December 2008  Now that the elections are behind us, what influence will the new administration have on the future of the real estate industry and the market as a whole? A key campaign promise was Obama's willingness to raise taxes for some and eliminate tax benefits for others. The mere possibility of raising the capital gains tax on real estate and stock investments and eliminating interest payment deductions on second homes will be devastating, especially in resort markets.  All we can do is hope that our new President surrounds himself with qualified economic experts who will advise him that "spreading the wealth" is when you help put Americans to work, not by raising taxe... 12/04/2008

There isn't a day that goes by that I'm not on the phone talking to clients about Short Sales.  Today's buyers spend a lot of time on the internet looking at cabins for sale in the Big Bear area before they ever come up and look around.  Between the bank owned, REO properties and the Short Sales, the buyers are seeing some very attractive prices.  One question that is asked more and more is what a Short sale is, and how is it different from a bank owned property? Because I'm asked that question so often, I thought it would be good to take a look at the differences between the REO property and the Short Sale.   What Is An REO Property? REO stands for Real Estate Owned or simply put, a bank owned property.  The banks have been overwhelmed with foreclosures and have become the owner of a l... 12/03/2008

I see more and more clients that are hoping to find the best deal, the one they think will be just sitting out their waiting for them to come along. Some buyers actually are looking for a cabin without the help of a local agent. This must be very frustrating. It reminds me of shopping at a big box retailer. I just wander around until I find what I am looking for. It takes me twice as long, but I know it is a waste of time to ask one of the clerks for help, since they have little knowledge of any of the products they sell. If you have experienced this with Realtors, I apologize! I think the biggest enemy of a Realtor is the fellow agents that don't know their inventory or their market. This gives the buyers in the market the idea that Realtors are not an essential piece in the search for... 11/30/2008

  Now that the prices have come down, it is time for you to buy that vacation cabin in the Big Bear Valley.  Obviously, you want to get the best cabin you can for the least amount of money, right? The best way to accomplish this is to make sure that you are in the strongest negotiating position possible. People think that the price offered is all that the seller is going to look at.  In reality, Price is only one factor in the negotiations, and not necessarily the most important one. Many times, other terms such as the down payment, good faith deposit, length of escrow, and seller concessions are also important to a seller. In my early days of selling Real Estate, I would suggest to my clients that they get "Pre Qualified"before making an offer on a property in Big Bear.  What this enta... 11/30/2008

 A Thankful Thanksgiving by Jim Rohn You may be wondering why I would call this article a Thankful Thanksgiving. Aren't all Thanksgivings Thankful? Unfortunately, no. As a person who has experienced over 70 Thanksgivings, I recognize that being thankful is something that we have to work at, even on Thanksgiving.If your home is like most, your Thanksgiving Day will be very busy, with either traveling to where you want to go or preparing your home to have others over for the day. Either way, that can be very hectic and emotionally trying, which doesn't lend itself to preparing your heart to be reflective and thankful. In fact, Thanksgiving weekend is the most traveled weekend in America. Airports are full and not always providing much room for contemplation of your good fortune.This means... 11/23/2008

It seems that everyone is doing Brokers Price Opinion's for the banks these days.  Unfortunately, I just recently lost one of my short sale listings to the bank.  What was sad about this situation was that I had a very good offer on this property to begin with.  Once the offer was presented to the bank, the BPO was ordered and the process began.  In just a few short weeks, the bank came back with a surprising response.    Based off of the numbers that came in from the BPO, this bank felt that the property was worth more than the offer.  The only way that they would eccept the offer if the seller contributed $6,000.00 to the deal.  Now, I feel very comfortable with my knowledge of the inventory in this part of Big Bear and was surprised with the stand that the bank was taking. There was ... 11/21/2008

The Statistical Summary above was taken from the local Big Bear Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Recently I have had a number of clients ask about the bank owned inventory and sales prices. This chart shows that in the past 6 months we have had 91 Bank owned REO properties that have sold through the Big Bear Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. (Obviously we have had some transactions that were not listed through the local MLS) What is interesting and a point of discussion with the buyers is the price differential. Unlike some of the more traditional markets in Southern California, these properties have been selling at list price or higher. (101.61%). Even traditional sellers are getting an average of 94% currently here in Big Bear. Those that are overpriced simply ar... 11/20/2008

It just doesn't add up.... Many of you are wondering what you should do with that nest egg that is disappearing in the stock market. You are working harder and struggling to save for your retirement.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               There is an opportunity right now that will soon be the thing you should have done. Big Bear housing prices have adjusted back to early 2004 levels.           Can you go to your portfolio for the weekend? Can you make family memories at your portfolio? Will you be pulling out your quarterly statement and sharing memories or photo's of your family enjoying ... 11/16/2008

Today I decided to take a look at sales trends over the past 6 years to see if anything interesting popped out. Below are sales reported by our MLS from 2003 through 2008. I've listed number of homes sold, average days on market, average list price, average sales price, median sales price, and sales price to list price ratio for each year. 2003 Lakefront Sales Number of Homes Sold: 22 Average Days on Market: 96 Average List Price: $898,584 Average Sales Price: $845,068 Median Sales Price: $703,750 Sales Price/List Price: 96%   2004 Lakefront Sales Number of Homes Sold: 23 Average Days on Market: 118 Average List Price: $935,086 Average Sales Price: $904,208 Median Sales Price: $824,500 Sales Price/List Price: 96%   2005 Lakefront Sales Number of Homes Sold: 43 Average Days on Market: 10... 11/13/2008

If you are thinking of buying or selling a home in Big Bear, you may want to take a look at the absorption rate of homes that are currently for sale. This is a good way to become more informed on the most current real estate market conditions in a particular area. There is an easy to understand article here describing what the absorption rate is and what it means for the real estate market. In simplistic terms, it is a mathematical equation that tells the amount of time it will take for a specified set amount of properties to be absorbed under current real estate market conditions. To get the most accurate reading for the Big Bear real estate market, you take the number of properties sold in the past month and divide that into the number of properties currently on the market for sale. S... 11/13/2008