Giving pause to Santa Barbara real estate one can take a look at the positive headlines, creating a much more optimistic feel for the state of home sales and the economy in general.  It has been stated over and over in recent years that economic recovery is tightly connected with real estate recovery.  The economy has been recovering slowly, and often real estate recovery has seemed even slower. It does look like that is starting to change in the Santa Barbara area.

Seems that the fear factor is gone and that consumer confidence is back in many market segments in  Montecito and Santa Barbara. Numbers are showing that there were 15% more sales in March with about 20% less inventory than a year ago. This is creating bidding wars on some properties in the Santa Barbara real estate market. As I mentioned in a previous blog the high end luxury market in the Montecito/Santa Barbara area is much stronger than it has been in the past few years. Looking at the $7,000,000 and above price range there were 75% more sales in the past 2 months than the same time frame in 2011. It appears high net worth buyers are now ready to put their money back into the luxury real estate market particularly in Montecito. To view currently available luxury homes for sale in Montecito click here.

It is important to remember, however, that not too long ago headlines were 99.9% bleak, offering little hope, and when there was hope it seemed months, if not years, in the future.  Today’s headlines on the other hand are far more optimistic, showing signs of life in retail, residential, new construction, and real estate investment. This is holding true in the Santa Barbara real estate market.

Recent Wall Street Journal headlines related to real estate include: “Drop in Store Vacancies Signals Possible Mall Rebound”, “Owning Regains Appeal”, and  “Foreclosure Starts ‘Fall’ in February”.  Likewise, recent headlines at Realty Times include: “Real Estate Outlook: Vacation Sales Surge”, and “Banks Upbeat About Mortgage Performance, Looser Credit Looms”.

While certainly real estate recovery is not in full bloom everywhere but it certainly is looking up.  The general sentiment appears to be that owning real estate is a good investment and that now is a great time to be a buyer. Whether you are looking for a primary residence, a vacation home, a luxury estate, or an investment property in a resort area Santa Barbara and Montecito offer a diverse selection of properties – to view Santa Barbara homes for sale click here or go to www.SantaBarbaraRE.com

 Sourced from: Internal Kinetic Real Estate Library

Home trends are not one size fits all.  Article after article states what is “in” and what is “out”, but before taking any of these ins and outs too seriously you should consider that every home and homeowner is individual. Santa Barbara homeowners certainly may differ in needs from those in other parts of the country. A Santa Barbara luxury home will have more expected features than the Santa Barbara entry level home. Not many people fit into a mold, so why should our homes.

Certainly the recession made everyone take pause and consider simplifying, downsizing, and limiting the luxury, but how much is individual.  Current trends for newer homes, for example, are negating the formal living room and formal dining room in many cases, but if we read between the lines we could also take this as a change in our society and an acknowledgement that today’s homeowner lives a more relaxed lifestyle, typically.

While they say most people are interested in smaller homes these days, a certain pro football player and his supermodel wife recently bought a home that was over 20,000 square feet in size.  Real estate is local.  If you are remodeling or building a home in Santa Barbara, you know your community, you know what is common in your community, and you know what people are looking for.  The best news is that if you don’t know, all you need to do is get in touch with an experienced Santa Barbara REALTOR® for a little guidance. Please go to www.SantaBarbaraRE.com to view homes for sale in Santa Barbara and feel free to contact me for guidance.

Click here to read “Remodeling Improvements That Entice Buyers” from Realty Times.

 Sourced from: Internal Kinetic Real Estate Library

There is some positive news with this update of Santa Barbara Real Estate sales year to date. The number of sold properties is up by 16% over last year at this time. The median sales price is down however, by about 6%.  The Santa Barbara median sales price is down by 37% from the peak of 2007 – wow this is great for Buyers! Plus with interest rates being so low, currently fluctuating around the 4% mark, this may very well be the best time to get into the Santa Barbara real estate market and have affordable payments! Looking at the  high end, Santa Barbara luxury market ($2,000,000 and up) this segment is still showing signs of weakness with ONLY 10% of the sales in October being above $2,000,000. There are some incredible opportunities for high end buyers in Santa Barbara and Montecito with some very motivated sellers especially as we approach the holidays and end of the year! Click here to search for homes and estates for sale in Santa Barbara.

Enchanting entry

I am pleased to announce a pocket listing in Montecito, California. This Montecito luxury home is located with easy access to the Upper or Lower Villages. This French Country home has a classic, vaulted roofline with stately fluted chimneys. The hedge and flower-lined walkway leads to the brick entry. The spacious living room boasts high beamed ceilings, hardwood floors and an antique inspired fireplace. The tastefully remodeled kitchen opens to a breakfast nook and a spacious family room  with a charming stone fireplace. The formal dining room and the breakfast area have French doors flowing to a delightful brick patio and lush grounds – ideal for entertaining large crowds or for more intimate gatherings. Thereare 3 bdrms and 3 full baths – the romantic master suite opens to a private patio complete with spa, one bedroom suite is upstairs separate from the others, and there is a wonderful office/library which could serve as a media room. Decorator colors and designer touches are found through out this home creating a perfect blend of casual elegance! A must see for those seeking a Montecito luxury home! For more information on this Montecito property or Santa Barbara

It was a beautiful day for viewing estates for sale in Montecito! There were 21 properties in Montecito on the broker tour this week.  The newest estate listing is a spectacular Mediterranean on 20 gated acres complete  with 7 bedrooms,  8.5 baths, media/screening room, fantastic gourmet  kitchen, 4-car garage, gorgeous pool, incredible ocean and mountain views, a guest house with its own gated entrance, bocce ball court, lawn, fruit trees, and Koi pond. This Montecito luxury home is located on one of the most desirable streets in Montecito. It  is offered at $12,700,000. On the other end of the spectrum there lies a  wonderful opportunity to purchase a Montecito property via a short sale. This single story, ocean view home set amidst larger estates,  overlooks red tile roofs and the Montecito Country Club. The 1/2 acre Montecito property is gated, has 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths and boasts lush landscaping and magnificent ocean views.
This is a rare opportunity to purpose a Montecito property in a distress sale. Whether you are looking for a high end luxury property or an entry level Montecito home now may be the best time to start your search! There are some great deals to be had!

Bel Air Knolls Sunset

Spacious Santa Barbara home for sale  in the coveted Bel Air Knolls neighborhood – ideally located near downtown Santa Barbara and less than 2 miles to the Santa Barbara oceanfront where Hendry’s Beach and a wonderful beachfront restaurant await you!  Colorful semi-tropical landscaping greets you at the front of this stunning home. The interior entry has beautiful wood floors in a herringbone pattern and flows to a cozy sitting area overlooking the impressive living/dining room. Soaring ceilings and an abundance of windows frame the picturesque views. This stylish light and bright home features an expansive deck which can be accessed from either the dining room or the kitchen. It is a great place to enjoy the Santa Barbara sunset views with plenty of room for entertaining. The sun-lit kitchen has a large island with cook top, cabinets galore, a walk-in pantry, and an eat-in area for casual meals. There is also easy access to the deck from the kitchen for dining al fresco – as Santa Barbara’s mild climate welcomes this year round. The spacious master suite features a romantic fireplace surrounded by bookcases and high vaulted ceilings. The adjoining master bath has a spa tub, separate shower and lots of room with double sinks.  The master also has a walk-in closet and a deck of exotic mahogany – great to escape for a little quiet time. There are 2 additional large bedrooms with full baths and a den or home office. The lower level bedroom has treetop views and its own private deck. There is lots of off street parking and a 3-car garage which serves the hobbyist well. The 1/3 acre lot boasts lots of mature & drought resistant plants including beautiful pepper,oak, and palm trees – what Santa Barbara home would be complete without palm trees?  An exceptional opportunity at $1,300,000. For more details contact Pat Saraca at 805-560-9951, Distinctive Real Estate, Santa Barbara.

Fifteen estates priced at $5,000,000 and above have closed escrow since July 1 in the Hope Ranch, Montecito, Santa Barbara areas. The most expensive one being an incredible oceanfront property in Hope Ranch. It sold at a price of $18,440,000 which was just over 35% off its original asking price and slightly over 21% off the last list price. It had been on the market for 8 months. This Mediterranean estate boasts 8 beautiful acres with its own private paved path down to the beach. There are sprawling lawns, putting greens, a pond, tennis court, pool, cabana, and guest house. View this Hope Ranch Estate. Ten of the 15 luxury home sales were in Montecito with the highest sale being a spectacular 10,000 s.f. home on 2.6 ocean view acres on prestigious East Mountain Drive selling for $13,100,000. This Montecito estate also had a guest house and pool. It had been on the market for 14 months at $15,300,000 and sold for 13% off the asking price. Another high end oceanfront property in Carpinteria just closed escrow this week at $10,700,000. This Hamptons style home was listed at $13,800,000 selling at 22% off its final list price(32% off original list price). It is in the gated Sand Point colony on 1.42 oceanfront acres with 133 feet of beach frontage and a pool. At this point the number of sales in the $5 million plus luxury real estate market in Montecito, Hope Ranch, and Santa Barbara is on pace to surpass last year’s numbers. Buyers may have realized that with so much seller motivation now is a great time to acquire a Santa Barbara estate. You may contact me at patsaraca@gmail.com  or  805-560-9951 for additional real estate information.

 A best buy on Santa Barbara’s beachfront community known as “The Mesa”.  This remodeled 4 bedroom home has lots of charm and upgrades.  It is convenient to many shops and restaurants offering everything from fast food to gourmet from pizza to sushi!This charming home is also near the beach and harbor, Shoreline Park, Ledbetter Beach, Hendry’s Beach, City College, & Washington Elementary School. There are warm maple floors in the living and dining rooms with an open floorplan. The sun light dining area flows to a trellis covered patio for dining al fresco. The living room has recessed lighting, fireplace, and plantation shutters. The kitchen has tile flooring, stainless steel appliances, and island work space area for preparing those delicious meals with fresh veggies from the garden.  There are lots of windows in the main living area with a peek of the ocean and islands! Multi-pane windows create a serene interior environment. There are 4 bedrooms and  2 full baths. The master bath has recently been remodeled!  The tropical landscaping in the yard is full of colorful flowers. There is a delightful veggie garden, a gorgeous tile patio and wall and a soothing fountain. There is plenty of off street parking and a 2 car garage on this gated parcel. Motivated sellers have priced this home for a quick sale at just $759,000! Yes that is $759,000 for a 4 bdrm turn-key home near the beach in Santa Barbara!! Hurry on this one.

According to the top California foreclosure tracking resource, which tracks every California foreclosure and provides daily auction updates, and has issued its monthly California Foreclosure Report for May 2010. Foreclosure filings, outcomes and inventories dropped overall from April to May. Foreclosure filings have declined substantially year-over-year with Notice of Default filings down 43.3 percent and Notice of Trustee Sale filings down 35.8 percent. The only significant increases from the prior year were Cancellations, up 141.3 percent, Sales to 3rd Parties, typically investors, up 75.4 percent, and Time-to-Foreclose, up 30.5 percent from May 2009.

Santa Barbara had 208 notice of trustee sales for May of 2010, down from 273 the same month last year. We have participated in several of these sales and the speed with which the REO are moving and the processing of these sales has improved dramatically. Banks are better equiped and more familiar with the process and the REO buyers are better informed and pepaired as well. This all bodes well the for the Santa Barbara real estate market, California and the nation as we are moving towards a market normalization as this inventory is absorbed. Purchase loan rates are some of the lowest in years once again and prices are still very favorable, which is a combination seldom seen in and real estate market. As more loan product becomes available and lenders get back to favorable lending practices, markets are stabilizing as show by these Santa Barbara foreclosure and state wide foreclosure numbers. For a customized list of the best forclosure properties available in Santa Barbara, contact us here and we will email you the current list.

Newly listed Santa Barbara luxury home for sale is in the desirable San Roque Park neighborhood.This spacious gem is on a beautiful tree-lined street. Enjoy the scent of jasmine and roses as you enter the flower lined brick walkway. An inviting front porch greets you where you can sit and take in the gorgeous mountain views. This coveted location is near a beautiful neighborhood park and Santa Barbara shops and restaurants. The large living room features coved molding, a wonderful picture window and a fireplace. The adjoining family & dining room flow out to a saltillo tiled deck overlooking the lush grounds. The chef’s kitchen has lots of room for creating gourmet meals and a charming breakfast nook in which to savor them. Specialty grocery stores are mere minutes from this home – so convenient! The master suite is on its own wing providing great privacy from the other two bedrooms. The huge yard is a gardener’s delight with an abundance of colorful flowers, plants, mature trees, lawn & patio areas, and a relaxing spa. Now is a fantastic buying opportunity as rates are incredibly low and predicted to go up. Offered at $1,280,000! Click here to view this home or search for other Santa Barbara luxury homes at http://santabarbarapocketlistings.com/