NEWS This month we are going to keep it brief with a simple thought. With the rising of interest rates, many people question how this will impact real estate. At the moment, it appears it’s helping spur more activity. Why?  When the population at large believe rates are rising, the…

NEWS With the continued focus on the government lately, it seems like an appropriate time to mention a new California State law that went into effect on January 1, 2017. Assembly Bill 2299 and Senate Bill 1069 impact residential real estate; the Bills and subsequent law are designed to provide…

Santa Barbara Real Estate – 2016 Year in Review The Data As we talk to people daily, there are two questions we are regularly asked: How is the real estate market doing? And which way is it headed? Working inside the business of real estate, it is easy to answer…

December 2016 WOW! For much of the Spring and Summer, the real estate market seemed to take a pause – perhaps as people wondered what direction the country would go on election night. Many seemed to be surprised by the election results. It was fascinating to see the over night…

October 2016 For the first three quarters of 2016 total homes sales have dropped by almost 14%. Condos lead the drop with a 27.5% decrease compared to 2015, but single family home sales have seen a decrease of 7.3%. Median price for homes and condos in 2016 have increased slightly,…

JULY 2016 Half way into the year is a great time to review where the market is at. Overall we are still experiencing a sellers market where properties that are perceived at value are moving quickly, some receiving multiple offers and going above asking. But buyers are being more selective;…

MAY 2016 Over the last 30 days, I have had the opportunity to analyze a lot of data and read, sometimes it can make your head spin. In addition, I had the opportunity to attend the UCSB Economic Forum and digest our April 2016 latest statistics. I want to know…

The first quarter of 2016 seems to be quickly behind us. On a national scale, I read an article that has me thinking. Here is a snippet: “As mortgage originations taper off and the refinancing wave slows, banks are betting that offering home-equity lines of credit, will appeal to many…

Exciting News! After a lot of consideration, I just made the decision to join the Compass team and support the launch of its first office here in Montecito / Santa Barbara. Compass is a real estate brokerage that is building a smarter, simpler, more sophisticated real estate experience. They are combining exceptional agents…

2015 in Review I love putting together a yearly wrap up, seeing what happened in our market this last year. First hand, this is my sixth year working in the market and experiencing some great changes. To sum up 2015, I would call it healthy, steady and balanced. In general prices remained…