patrick.net

@ 4PLY Brentwood has a 'small time feel' as well (without the smog). You forget that SMOG gets trapped in the San Gabriel valley and shrouds everything in a dirty brown haze. I can't imagine how anyone could live with the smog.

What type of 'community events' are held in Sierra Smogre? Besides 'smog alerts' I mean.

The foreclosure rate in the La Canada-Flintridge-La Crescenta area is up about 800
percent year over year yet the prices remain very high.
I live a few blocks from the Sierra Madre border and the smog is not any worse here than any other area.
There are some houses for sale in Sierra Madre right now for under 400,000 so I don't know how accurate that chart is.
I looked at a condo there a few weeks ago and they were trying to get 249,000. It was not a bad place but I think it will be coming down in price soon.

WillyWanker says

4PLY, I would only look at 3 bedroom 2 bath homes for use as servant’s quarters.

Well it's good to know where you are coming from. Thanks for deigning to speak with the peasants.

The Fannie Mae figure, does that default rate include bad loans they've purchased from other firms (and now have on their books?) or simply loans that they have underwritten between the tail end of '07 and today.

Keep in mind their share of the mortgage market has increasing, so the increase in risk of default should increase as well; given that they are one of the few who extend credit to "marginal" borrowers in today's lending environment.

When things were going gangbusters in the first part of the decade, Fannie Mae was an afterthought. After all why put down 3.5% when you can take out a 120% LTV no money down loan wiht no proof of assets?

Seriously though a default rate of 4% isn't horrible; it's the rate of acceleration of default that's scary.

@Wankoff

@ 4PLY Brentwood has a ’small time feel’ as well (without the smog). You forget that SMOG gets trapped in the San Gabriel valley and shrouds everything in a dirty brown haze. I can’t imagine how anyone could live with the smog. What type of ‘community events’ are held in Sierra Smogre? Besides ’smog alerts’ I mean.

Its a small town with 177 events each year, that our community can enjoy. The area is very walkable, with hiking next door...plus we have old town in Pasadena to enjoy. Ohh...I almost forgot, unlike Brentwood we dont have to worry about our next career move since we have all of LA county in which we can job search. Should we want to start a business, we have the largest market in the world that we can sell to.

2/19/10 Wine Tasting 2010 Fundraiser Wine Tasting Library
12/10/09 Barks and Books! Children's Event Library
11/19/09 Third Thursday Book Club, 11-19-09 Book Club Library
11/12/09 Barks and Books is Back! Children's Event Library
11/7/09 Teen Advisory Board Meeting, 11-07-09 Teen Event Library
11/5/09 Planning Commission Meeting Cancelled, 11-05-09 Commission Meeting Development Services
11/5/09 Coordinating Council, 11-05-09 Community Meeting Community Services
11/4/09 SMTV3 Committee Meeting, 11-04-09 Committee Meeting Community Services
10/30/09 Halloween Happenings 2009 Children's Event Community Services
10/28/09 Library Board of Trustees Meeting, 10-28-09 Commission Meeting Library
10/28/09 Farmers Market 10-28-09 Community Event Community Services
10/27/09 City Council Meeting, 10-27-09 City Council Meeting City Council
10/22/09 UUT Oversight Committee Agenda, 10-22-09 Committee Meeting Administrative Services
10/21/09 Preschool Storyhour, Wednesday Evenings Children's Event Library
10/21/09 Tree Commission Meeting, 10-21-09 Commission Meeting Public Works
10/20/09 Canyon Zone Committee Meeting, 10-20-09 Committee Meeting Development Services
10/19/09 Preschool Storyhour, Monday Mornings Children's Event Library
10/19/09 to 10/24/09 Bargain Book Table Sale 10-19 to 10-24-09 Booksale Library
10/19/09 Community Services Commission Meeting, 10-19-09 Commission Meeting Community Services
10/16/09 Living with Wildlife, 10-16-09 Community Meeting Police Department
10/15/09 Third Thursday Book Club, 10-15-09 Book Club Library
10/15/09 Planning Commission Meeting, 10-15-09 Commission Meeting Development Services
10/14/09 Community Mudslide Meeting at City Hall ,10-14-09 Community Meeting Community Services
10/14/09 Strategic Planning Retreat-Cancelled Community Meeting City Council
10/13/09 City Council Meeting, 10-13-09 City Council Meeting City Council
10/10/09 Teen Advisory Board Meeting, 10-10-09 Teen Event Library
10/10/09 to 11/21/09 In-N-Out Reading Program comes to the Library Children's Event Library
10/8/09 Barks and Books is Back! Library
10/7/09 SMTV3 Committee Meeting, 10-07-09 Committee Meeting Community Services
10/6/09 City Council Special Meeting, 10-06-09 City Council Meeting

@Wankmydoodle

Here is what you get in Brentwood...enjoy your cornfest.

The Brentwood "Cornfest" occurs one weekend in July each year, culminating in a concert. Past performers include Eddie Money, Eric Burdon and The Fixx.
Numerous local farms operate produce stands or offer "U-Pick" opportunities.
A farmer's market is held on First Street in downtown Brentwood on Saturday mornings during the summer.

@ 4PLY
Wow, you mean you can ACTUALLY go to a CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING in Sierra SMOGRE? What a BARN-BURNER! *yuck yuck yuck*

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/October-home-sales-rise-101-apf-3980633502.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

October Sales RISE 10.1%. Largest increase in 2 1/2 years.

The median sales price was $173,100, down 7.1 percent from a year earlier and off 1.6 percent from September.

Well here's a large chunk of that 10.1% spike.

http://miami.craigslist.org/search/rea?query=owner+finance&catAbbreviation=rea&minAsk=min&maxAsk=150000&bedrooms=3

the banks release some inventory, every three months or so, and cash investors buy them up as quick, as they hit the market.

here's a search with out the keyword "owner financing"

http://miami.craigslist.org/search/rea?query=&catAbbreviation=rea&minAsk=min&maxAsk=150000&bedrooms=3

It's not that I am looking for anything, I use 150K as a cap, to gauge what is going for 120K to 150K. It's gotten better over the year, but IMO, it has a way to go yet. There's still to many houses out there that belongs in the 120-150K range that is still in the high 190s to mid 200's.

These houses almost every single one I've inquired on, has already been purchased by a private equity firm trying to flip it for a big profit than what they paid the banks.

It's still a cooked books racket, they might as well claim sales are up 50%, but that isn't moving real inventory that I am actually interested in.

Those still sit unsold.

If sales are up why were mortgage applications down 12 percent in October?
It must be cash buyers who think they will be able to rent these houses out, but the rental market keeps slumping and jobs keep disappearing in the same areas with high sales turnover.
Who will want to rent there is there are no jobs?
Also I keep getting notices of "back on the market" homes that were counted as sales in the
previous statistics so a lot of these deals are falling through and being sold again.

pinnacle says

If sales are up why were mortgage applications down 12 percent in October?

It must be cash buyers who think they will be able to rent these houses out, but the rental market keeps slumping and jobs keep disappearing in the same areas with high sales turnover.

Who will want to rent there is there are no jobs?

Also I keep getting notices of “back on the market” homes that were counted as sales in the

previous statistics so a lot of these deals are falling through and being sold again.

Yep. My rent dropped 8% this year. Couldn't be happier...and slam dunk on that mortgage applications point :)

knewbetter says

I’ve been listening to people bitch about buying a house for over 15 years. You can always find a reason not to buy one. Even it they break the affordability secret code, now its because they don’t want to fix anything, or they may have to move, or now’s not a good time, or we need some more money to pay down the debt, or its just a hassle.
Whatever. Knowing what it costs to build a house I wouldn’t own a 1000sqft ranch for $500,000. But I wouldn’t expect prices to drop 70% in the most desirable markets in the U.S.

What about the 50% decrease in Japans real estate markets over the past 15 years?...this is evidence that markets can and will adjust.

WillyWanker says

@ 4PLY
Wow, you mean you can ACTUALLY go to a CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING in Sierra SMOGRE? What a BARN-BURNER! *yuck yuck yuck*

Stupidity seems to be your favorite color. Lets end our debate here.

4PLY, How's that house hunting going with your (modest) budget? :P

Did you look at the yoy DQ price jump for Sierra Smogre??? UP 26.5%!!! Gotta love the numbers. Perhaps you might want to try out La Puente instead.

http://www.dqnews.com/Charts/Monthly-Charts/LA-Times-Charts/ZIPLAT.aspx

Some of that wonderful air over Sierra Smogre. Air you can sink your teeth into. :P