Irvine is definitely in a Buyer's Market now

Irvine is definitely in a Buyer's Market now, with 961 homes for sale at the end of September, and only 159 sales. Of course this doesn't mean that some Irvine areas & tracts aren't in a Neutral or Seller's Market.

The number of homes for sale dropped slightly from end-August's number of 992.

If 159 homes are sold again this month, it will take over six months to sell all the inventory, assuming no other homes come on the market, and none of the homes offered for sale expire or are cancelled or withdrawn.

Here is a snapshot of the activity in Irvine during the past year.

See how sales have been dropping every month since May, and the number of homes for sale has increased every single month since December.... until now.

Is the decrease in the number of homes for sale in September the start of a downward trend?

I believe that the end-October inventory number will be lower than last month's, and I believe that the end November number will be even lower still.

Is this wishful thinking?

Well, with the holidays and elections just around the corner, I don't think so.

While I don't see a dramatic increase in the number of homes that will be sold in the next few months, especially as only 66% of our inventory are "standard sale" listings.

Open House today, Sunday 17th, at 2 Glenoaks

I'm holding an Open House at my latest Irvine listing today, from 1 pm to 5 pm.

2 Glenoaks sits on a huge corner lot.

There's a magnificent custom salt water PRIVATE POOL & oversized 8-person SPA and waterfall, and a Volcano-blower with FOUNTAIN effect in the shallow-end.

Flagstone decking, raised patio and Slate-tiled BBQ area.

See a short video here.

The GOURMET KITCHEN with Solid Cherry-Wood cabinets, including pull-outs & easy-touch drawers, has high-end STAINLESS STEEL APPLIANCES. Tumbled travertine backsplash with imported tile inlay. Look at those SLAB GRANITE COUNTERTOPS!

There are upgrades galore, including dark HARDWOOD FLOORS in the living room, family room, upstairs hallway and Bull Nose stairs, custom stone fireplace and custom built-in entertainment center, decorator paint and recessed lighting.

See the luxurious ITALIAN TUMBLED TRAVERTINE SPA SHOWER, huge tub, custom mosaic tile accents, and dual sinks in the master bathroom. Inside the OVERSIZED WALK-IN CLOSET, is a shoe closet that holds 80 pairs of shoes!

Convenient upstairs laundry. The 3-CAR GARAGE has built-in storage cabinets, dry food storage cabinets, and a large maple/tile cabinet workstation.


I hope to see you there!

"The Landings" Market Update - Woodbridge, Irvine

Here's the third quarter activity in the two "Landings" tracts in Woodbridge, Irvine:

See more at http://www.woodbridgeirvine.com/

Top 10 Most Stressful Jobs. Really?

I just read an interesting article on RealtorMag, (by By Melissa Dittmann Tracey), about stressful jobs, and I must say that I was surprised to see the job of a "real estate agent" was considered to be one of the most stressful jobs you can have.

This was according to CareerCast's 2010 Jobs Rated report, which analyzed the stress level of 200 professions.

While I agree that stress certainly comes with the "job", to be ranked the number 10 most stressful profession made me stop and think.

Do Realtors deal with more stress than say, a Wall Street broker on the Trading Floor, or a Second Grade teacher taking care of 20 little "angels"?

Sure, as the article says, competition among real estate agents did rise when the economy softened, and this was reportedly a major factor in landing agents in the top 10 of the most stressful jobs report.

In working out the stress rankings, CareerCast accounted for such factors as work environment, competitiveness, and job risk.

I agree with the part of the report that noted: "Real estate agents and brokers work long, erratic hours, spending much of their time showing properties to clients. They must be extremely independent, and able to handle sales quotas and deadline pressures."

I minimize the number of hours that I spend showing properties to buyers by:
(1) Conducting a buyer interview to guage among other things, the buyer's motivation,
(2) Only taking out buyers who have been pre-approved by a lender, and
(3) Researching homes and asking questions to the listing agent before showing the home.

What agent can honestly say there isn't stress involved with a lot of closings? Sure there is, but a good Transaction Coordinator is worth her weight in gold, (mine is worth her weight in diamonds!), and deadlines passing are very seldom an issue for me.

Do I lead a stress-free life? Certainly not, but a lot of my stress is eliminated by planning my work, and working the plan! It's a help if the other people involved in a transaction are well-organized and on top of their game, but when they're not, stress often follows.

I'm thankful that Realtors aren't listed in the first 9 positions in the Stressful Jobs report - that would be stressful!

John D. Mayfield wrote a good "5 Ways to Handle Stress" article. Check it out.