Santa Barbara Area Real Estate Closings - May 2012

Year to Date Closings 2007-2012

Legend

2007^ 

2008x

2009*

2010.

2011'

2010

Santa Barbara Real Estate Market Update for end May

5180 Kara Drive, SB 93111

listed at $1,025,000

Single Family and PUD Homes	Total Active			2012 Year To Date Activity New Listings			For the Greater Santa Barbara Number Under Contract			Multiple Listing System Number Sold
District	Last Year	This Year	PCT	Last Year	This Year	PCT	Last Year	This Year	PCT	Last Year	This Year	PCT
05 - CARPINTERIA-SUMMERLAND	133	97	-27	80	54	-32	33	38	+15	36	39	+8
10 - MONTECITO	370	361	-2	203	204	+0	82	115	+40	64	102	+59
15 - SB/EAST OF STATE	337	291	-13	232	189	-18	114	156	+36	85	125	+47
20 - SB/WEST OF STATE	212	215	+1	139	145	+4	86	130	+51	75	88	+17
25 - HOPE RANCH	52	43	-17	33	25	-24	15	10	-33	10	8	-20
30 - SB/GOL SOUTH	109	96	-11	71	70	-1	32	68	+112	27	49	+81
35 - SB/GOL NORTH	209	182	-12	131	127	-3	69	115	+66	62	86	+38

Montecito Beach Property

Through May, compared to last year, sales are up

from 340 to about 475

 for approximately a 40% rise 

while the median sales price is down a little

 from $810,000 last year to about $795,000

 for a 2% drop.

Escrows are up from 405 to about 605

for a 50% upswing 

with the median list price on

 those escrows going 

down 10% from $879,000 to about $800,000.

                With all the activity in sales and escrows

 the overall inventory remains at around 400 

Home Estate/PUDs available for purchase 

from Carpinteria to Goleta.

 Because the concentration of sales are

 below $1 million, the median list price 

on those homes has risen to about

 $1.95 million with the average list price 

hovering around $3.65 million.

Stay tuned. This week we find out from

local Economist, Dr. Mark Schniepp 

what the indicators are

for the next six months of Santa Barbara Real Estate

may look like!

to search the SB MLS for properties for sale, click here

 

A big thanks to Gary Woods, member of the SB MLS Economic

Review Committee for keeping the troops informed on the stats!

Fairview Farm Summer Camp begins June 18

Summer Camp at Fairview Gardens!

Sign up Now, classes begin June18th

Each day on the farm is different as our highly trained mentors are aware of the passions and curiosities of the group. If your child signs up for more than one week, it is likely they will do some of the same activities however, the week will feel different because we do not have rigid activities for each day of the week. Rather, we see opportunity for a fun endeavor and create a teachable moment from pure joy of the moment.

Most weeks include include some combination of:
• Brushing and caring for the goats
• Harvesting, planting and tending our children garden
• Climbing avocado trees
• Storytelling
• Cleaning the chicken coop
• Cooking or canning with Fairview food crops
• Picking strawberries
• Cooperative adventures
• Nature Awareness activities
• Arts and Crafts
and so much more . . .

2012 SUMMER CAMP SCHEDULE
Cost: Sliding scale $250-$350

2012 SUMMER CAMPS & DATES
TURNIP TOPS	PUMPKIN PALS	BROCCOLI BANDITS
AGES 3-5	AGES 6 – 8	AGES 9 – 11
Times: 9am – 2pm	Times: 9am – 3pm	Times: 9am – 3pm
Cost: $250 – $350	Cost: $250 – $350	Cost: $250 – $350
June 18 – 22 July 9 – 13 July 16 – 20 July 30 – Aug 3 August 6 – 10 August 13 – 17 • •	June 18 – 22 June 25 – 29 July 16 – 20 July 23 – 27 July 30 – Aug 3 August 6 – 10 August 13 – 17 •	June 25 – 29 July 9 – 13 July 23 – 27 • • • • •

We have a maximum of 12 kids per camp with at least one
experienced staff mentor and 2 volunteers.

For registration details, click here

Information from Fairview Gardens' Website

Blooming Orchid Cacti

Epiphyllum

aka

Orchid Cacti

Amazing blooms lasting only a day or so

rescued from a neglected garden....

they have come to thrive in my garden 

and have rewarded me with these magical flowers

Santa Barbara Real Estate is Sizzling with Summer Sales

Santa Barbara is Sizzling!

The following is an excerpt from an article written by my Village Properties Associate, Jackie Walters, who is also a member of the Statistical Review Committee for the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors.

The sun is not only shining on Santa Barbara’s beautiful beaches and foothills but also the local real estate market. Simply put, sales are up strongly and inventory is down. Months of inventory for Santa Barbara’s South Coast, from Carpinteria to Goleta, is at a jaw-dropping 2.6 months; 2.8 months for houses and PUDs and 2.3 months for condos. (PUD stands for “Planned Unit Development,” free-standing homes in a housing association.)

Buyers are signing offers, writing deposit checks, negotiating great prices, and entering escrow in surging numbers. House and condo prices have become too tantalizing to resist, and qualified buyers, many with all cash, are jumping into the market without hesitation. The number of houses and PUDs entering escrow through the end of April 2012 was up a whopping 46% over the first four months of 2011. Closed escrows for houses and PUDs through the end of April totaled 340, the strongest start to the year since 2004! Sellers are getting closer to their asking prices than one year ago, 95.9% vs. 91.4%. (This is for most recent price before the property entered escrow, after any price reductions, not original asking price.)

Buyers in the under-$800,000 market, and sporadically in other higher price ranges, are now having to face the challenge of navigating the multiple-offer process. This is a head-spinning reality for buyers who have strategically been watching, waiting and timing their move into the market, only to find two, four or six other prospective buyers bidding on a property they have their heart set on. There is no magic solution to side-step this phenomenon. Buyers are advised to work closely with their Realtor, who will be able to let them know immediately when a property becomes available. Also, don’t give up! I have worked with many buyers over the years who have been disappointed on losing out on one property only to find something that they are even more enthusiastic about a few months later.

What’s going on with prices? The median price for houses and PUDs through the end of April is $785,000 which is down 3.1% for the same period one year ago. If one were to remove the two higher-cost communities of Montecito and Hope Ranch the median is down only 0.8%. Going back four years to the first quarter of 2008 the median price was $1,180,000, showing a drop of 33.5% to today’s median. For four years, 2005 through 2008, the South Coast median price for houses and PUDs plateaued right around $1,200,000; 2009 the median slid to $827,500. 2010 the median jogged up slightly to $840,000, followed by a median of $810,000 for 2011. For condos, there were 102 closed escrows year to date, giving a median price of $399,995.

All real estate is local. With the Pacific Ocean to the south and the Santa Ynez mountains to the north, Santa Barbara and its surrounding communities have negligible options for expansion. The supply of existing homes remains limited while the desire to live here has steadily increased over time. Unfortunately, there is no bell that rings when prices have reached “the bottom,” but a broader review of all the local real estate market indicators, together with the returned sense of buyer “confidence,” would suggest that’s exactly where we are. 

Thank you Jackie! At Village Properties, YOU ARE FAMILY!

for more information, click here: search the entire MLS

Celebrate the Summer Solstice Edition of First Thursday

Visit downtown Santa Barbara

for First Thursday

free art, culture, 

music and fun

The June 7th Event will included

more than 35 cultural art venues,

artist receptions, demonstrations

and live music

featuring

Solstice Workshop Station

on Marshall's Patio

900 State Street

for more information and downloadable event Passport, click here

Portraits at the SB Museum of Art - Sundays

Santa Barbara Museum of Art

1130 State Street

Sundays, June 3 and 10 

1:30 – 4:30 pm

Studio Sundays 
on the Front Steps

Sundays, June 3 and 10,

1:30 – 4:30 pm

Pose for a free portrait and create your own frame to

celebrate the art of portrait photography, inspired

by the exhibition Portrayal/Betrayal. Return the

following weekend and pose with your pet!

June 3: People Portrait Studio

June 10: Pooch Portrait Studio

Front Steps of the 

Santa Barbara Museum of Art

Free

At Studio Sundays on the Front Steps,

visitors ofall ages are welcome to 

participate in this hands-on

workshop with SBMA Teaching

Artists on theMuseum's front steps. 

Each month explorea different medium,

including clay, metal, ink, wood, 
photography, and paper, and 

gain inspiration from works of art in the 

Museum's permanent collection or 

special exhibitions.

for directions and more information, click here