Ivana Octaviani

12/30/2022

Happy Holidays! Will 2023's real estate stocking be full of presents -- or coal? -

12/12/2022

Should You Sell Your House or Wait? -

11/05/2022

The Fed Elects to Further Pressure the Housing Market -

The Federal Reserve just raised the Federal Funds rate target to 4.00%, up 0.75%. Mortgage rates (30-year fixed) are now over 7%. What does this mean for potential buyers? A year ago, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate was around 3%. As you can see on the chart below, that equated to a monthly mortgage...

09/21/2022

When Will LA Home Prices Go Down? -

I get this question a lot from prospective buyers. They want to know when prices will go down. My two cents is this: I don't see prices correcting dramatically from here. Slowing a bit yes, especially if mortgage rates remain “elevated,” but I don’t see a repeat of 2008-09 on the horizon. I’...

08/22/2022

When Will LA Home Prices Go Down? -

I get this question a lot from prospective buyers. They want to know when prices will soften. My two cents is this: I don't see prices correcting dramatically from here. Slowing a bit yes, especially if mortgage rates remain “elevated,” but I don’t see a repeat of 2008-09 on the horizon. I’v...

08/09/2022

Summer's Almost Over -

Nationally, existing home sales (seasonally adjusted and annualized) continued their downward trend in 2022, hitting a fresh low of 5.12 million units in June, while months of inventory hit a 2022 high of 3 months. Interestingly, median sales price climbed (up 15% in 2022!) even as both mortgage rat...

04/26/2022

Will the Market Spring to New Heights, -

According to Bankrate, the 30-year purchase mortgage fixed rate currently stands at around 5.30%, up from 3.24% at the start of the year and 4.25% at the end of February. The increase reflects the Fed's attempt to rein in inflation with talk (and some action) of higher rates and reduced mortgage pur...

02/01/2022

Going for Broke(r) -

It’s hard to believe it’s already February..... And 2022! And although Groundhog Day isn’t until tomorrow, the Southern California real estate market in 2021 seemed like a replay of the past several years. Record home price appreciation as far as the eye can see. In December, the median home p...

10/28/2021

Trick.... or Treat? -

Following September’s upside surprise in Existing Home Sales, the housing market was treated again to unexpectedly good September figures – this time in national New Home Sales.  September New Home Sales (in units) rose 14% MOM (the highest MOM figure since July 2020). Sales rose most strongly ...

09/14/2021

Fall(ing) Home Prices? -

Welcome to Fall! (OK, not officially until September 21, but we're post-Labor Day now). So, are sizzling Summer temps and home prices behind us? Well we can't go that far, but the market appears to be closer to normalizing. According to a recent article in The Real Deal (9/3/21), nation-wide invento...

08/02/2021

Is the Market Poised for a Downturn ... or New Highs? -

Have sellers finally met their match in price-induced buyer fatigue? Nationally, pending sales declined for the first time since May 2020. Larry Yun of the National Association of Realtors describes the decline as a "turning point for the market," adding that the slowdown in sales is "largely due to...

07/16/2021

Happy Fri-Yay everyone! I can't wait to share this new listing with all of you. 🏡