Santa Cruz Property Median Price Increase

Santa Cruz real estate statistics continued to improve through April with increases to median home values for the county. The median home sales price for April was $551,500 compared to a median price of 530,00 for March which represents a 4.1% increase month over month and a 22.8% increase year over year. The average sales price for homes in Santa Cruz County also rose year over year climbing 5.8% to $648,201. These numbers reflect a strong Santa Cruz real estate market. Now is a great time to buy as California Mortgage rates are very low.

Fed Holds Interest Rates For The 17th Month In A Row

The Federal Reserve Bank has voted to hold steady the Fed Funds Target rate at 0.00% to 0.25%. The Fed Funds target rate has been at 0.00% to 0.25% since December 16, 2008. The Federal Funds Rate is the interest rate at which private banks lend balances at the Federal Reserve to other banks, usually overnight. It is the effective interest rate banks charge each other for loans.

The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke has supported the decision to leave rates unchanged at 0% for nearly 17 months in order to stimulate an economic recovery. The financial crisis of 2008 has resulted in unprecedented Federal Reserve intervention in an attempt to stave off a further financial meltdown.

This is good short term news for people buying property as it is likely to help keep home mortgage rates at near all time lows for a little longer.

San Francisco Metro Area Shows Improvement

San Francisco is proving to be an unusual market for investing in real estate. The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index, a closely watched gauge of U.S. home prices, shows the San Francisco Metro area to have the single largest year over year increase of 11.9%. California led the way with every city indexed showing a gain. San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles Metros all showed increases. The entire index rose 0.6% from a year earlier, while a 10-city gauge rose 1.4%, marking the first annual gains in both measures since December 2006. 11 of the 20 cities in the price index still experienced year over year declines in home prices. The market suffering the worst is Las Vegas with 14.6% decline.

Santa Cruz Named Among Top Places To Live

No surprise, Santa Cruz was named to the list of "America's Top 100 Places To Live." The list by RelocateAmerica.com named Santa Cruz to its list, which focuses on communities poised for economic recovery and future growth. According to the Web site, RelocateAmerica "discovered communities with strong local leadership, employment opportunities, thriving community commitment, improving real estate markets, growing green initiatives, plentiful recreational options and an overall high quality of life." It's good to hear that Santa Cruz Real Estate is recovering. This is the 13th year that RelocateAmerica has published the top 100 list. Cities were not given an individual rank as compared to the other cities named. Other California cities on the list were San Diego, Vacaville and Temecula.

Santa Cruz Property Sales Numbers Rise

The number of existing home sales climbed more than expected in March after three straight months of declines, as the home buyer tax credit incentives drew in real estate buyers and started a strong spring buying season.

The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that sales of previously occupied homes rose 6.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.35 million last month, the highest level since December. February's sales figures were revised downward slightly to 5.01 million.

Sales are up 18% from their low in the beginning of 2009, yet are still down 26% from their peak in the fall of 2005. March results had been expected to rise about 5% to 5.28 million, according to economists.

Sales rose in every region, including Santa Cruz County homes, surging more than 7% in the Midwest and South, 6.6% in the West and 6% in the Northeast.

For several months, home buyers have not felt rushed after the extension of the deadline to qualify for home buyer tax incentives. The government is offering a $8,000 credit for first-time buyers and $6,500 for current homeowners willing to buy and move into another property.

But now time is running out. Buyers must sign contract offers by April 30 to qualify.

10 days Left For Santa Cruz Real Estate Tax Credit

The deadline is quickly approaching for Santa Cruz property buyers interested in receiving the $8,000 and $6,500 first and second-time homebuyer tax credit. Purchase agreements must be signed by April 30, 2010.

First and second-time home buyers have to sign their purchase agreement by April 30, 2010 and close the escrow by June 30, 2010 in order to qualify for the real estate tax credits. Home buyers will get up to an $8,000 check in the mail for first-time home buyers, $6,500 for repeat home buyers.

This is the second phase of this credit. It was extended in November 2009, but most experts agree it is not likely to be extended again.

Those who sign a purchase agreement and close on a house in time can amend their 2009 tax returns and get their tax credit now.

If you need a Santa Cruz Realtor to assist you with finding a home to take advantage of the homebuyer tax credit I can help.

Santa Cruz Mortgage Rates Decreased Last Week

Santa Cruz Home mortgage rates decreased last week, returning to levels seen two weeks ago, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey of conforming rates, released on Thursday.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.07% for the week ended April 15, down from 5.21% last week. A year ago, the mortgage averaged 4.82%. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.40%, down from 4.52% last week and 4.48% a year ago.

The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 4.08%, down from 4.25% last week and 4.88% a year ago. And the one-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 4.13%, down from 4.14% last week and 4.91% a year ago.

"After rising for four consecutive weeks, mortgage rates eased back to where they were two weeks ago and still remain historically low," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, in a news release.

Most experts agree that California mortgage rates will likely increase, one of the factors is that the government has stopped purchasing mortgage backed securities.

If you need a free list of Santa Cruz properties or Santa Cruz homes for sale I can help. Visit my website for a free MLS search.