Simi Valley Housing Market Update YTD 6-30-09

Simi Valley Housing Market Update YTD 6-30-09

While the unit number below show a total inventory of 342 Simi Valley Homes for Sale,  the reality is that under 170 are “Actives”; the balance are in escrow listed as “contingent”.  This is import in that these “contingent properties”  are mostly short sale properties and are not in a position to be “active” or take a back-up offer.  This false positive reporting hides that fact that inventory is at all time lows and coupled with the low interest rates and the $8,000 Federal Tax Credit for 1st Time buyers, the market has been whipped up into a frenzy.

The underlying National and State economies,  rising unemployment in California and the backlog of bad loans still on the books of many banks, will keep this market interesting for a while to come.  It ain’t over till it’s over and this is no time to make an impulse home purchase.

I ran the interest rates from 2002 through 2008 last year and what was particularly interesting is that every time the interest rate went over 6%, Simi Valley Real Estate came to a screeching halt.  Inventory exploded into very high levels and appreciation went from the teens to under a few percent each time.  We can only imagine what might happen in this fragile market if rates went over six percent and buyers had a much larger selection of properties to look at.

My point is that the government can only come up with gimmicks for so long, so be cautious and make a smart buy.  If you are a seller, well I should not have to tell you how great it is to be selling in a low inventory market.  Just don’t get greedy, because if you wait too long things could change quickly.