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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will not be reducing loan limits, the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced last week. FHFA Director Mel Watt’s decision not to direct the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) to lower the limits for home loans that they back is a major shift in direction of his predecessor, who favored winding down their role in mortgage finance.
The conforming loan limit will remain at $417,000 in most areas and at $625,500 in high-cost areas like Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Watt also said the agency was taking steps to loosen mortgage credit by easing standards on when banks could be forced to buy back some loans sold to Fannie and Freddie.
A conforming loan limit is the maximum size for loans that can be purchased by government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. Mortgages purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are generally less expensive than the larger jumbo loans because the government absorbs the cost of default.
Watt’s announcement is good news, especially for California home buyers, said David Tonna, president of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®. “If the FHFA were to lower the loan limits, it would force home buyers to pay more for their mortgages and undermine home ownership affordability. High-cost areas like Silicon Valley are already experiencing shrinking housing affordability,” said Tonna.
The California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) immediately commended the new FHFA director’s announcement. “C.A.R. commends FHFA Director Melvin Watt for his announcement that the FHFA will not reduce loan limits on loans eligible for purchase by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,” said C.A.R. President Kevin Brown. “Lower loan limits would have had an adverse effect in many parts of the country, but especially here in California where rebounding home prices and decreasing home affordability would hamper mortgage activity and impact the housing recovery.”
The number of California homes that sold for a million dollars or more last year rose to the highest level in six years, and Silicon Valley neighborhoods continue to rank among the highest on the list of these high-end home sales.
A report from real estate information service DataQuick indicates a total of 39,175 California homes sold for a million dollars or more last year, up 45.1 percent from 26,993 in 2012. It was the highest number sold since 42,506 in 2007, according to DataQuick.
Hillsborough, Saratoga, Menlo Park, Cupertino, Los Altos, Woodside and Los Gatos, which are located in the five districts served by members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR), were on the list of communities with the highest number of million-dollar home sales in the state. Hillsborough had 436 million-dollar home sales last year, with the most expensive home selling for $13.3 million; Saratoga, 332 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive purchased for $12.3 million; Menlo Park, 321 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive purchased for $5.5 million; Cupertino, 317 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive sold for $3.8 million; Los Altos, 267 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive purchased for $14.3 million; Woodside, 273 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive sold for $12 million; and Los Gatos, 243 million-dollar home sales, the most expensive sold for $4.8 million.
David Tonna, president of SILVAR, attributed the rise in high-end home sales in the region to a robust economy and rising home prices. “We are fortunate to have an economy that has made a comeback quickly, thanks to tech companies that are growing, some by leaps and bounds. The high demand for homes and lack of inventory has led to the appreciation of many homes,” explained Tonna.
Statewide, 840 homes sold for more than $5 million last year, an all-time high and up 20.3 percent from the previous high of 698 in 2012. In the $4-$5 million range a record 596 homes sold, up 29.3 percent from 2012. In the $3-$4 million range, a record 1,455 homes sold, up 31.3 percent from 2012. In the $2-$3 million range sales totaled 4,492, a record and up 37.4 percent from 2012. In the $1-$2 million range, 25,352 sold last year, up 42.5 percent from 2012.
The DataQuick report indicated the most expensive confirmed purchase in 2013 was a 15,355-square-foot, 8-bedroom, 14-bathroom beachfront Malibu mansion which sold for $74,500,000. The largest was a 25,447-square-foot, 16-bedroom, 18-bathroom mansion in Indian Wells that sold for $2,250,000.
According to the real estate information service a record 10,602 homes that sold for $1 million or more were bought with cash, up from 7,791 in 2012. Cash was used more frequently the higher up the price scale. Of those who did finance their purchase last year, the median down payment was 30 percent of the purchase price.
SILVAR’s 2014 Installation Dinner is next week on Thursday, January 9, 6 p.m. at Villa Ragusa, 35 South 2nd Street in Campbell. At this special event, 2014 President David Tonna and the 2014 officers and Board of Directors will be officially installed.
Taking the oath of office with Tonna will be Chris Isaacson, President-elect; Phyllis Carmichael, Treasurer; Carolyn Miller, Past President; Suzanne Yost, Region 9 Chair; Lehua Greenman, Menlo Park/Atherton District Chair; Jeff Beltramo, Palo Alto District Chair; Bonnie Kehl and Joe Brown, Los Altos/Mountain View District Co-chairs; Sue Bose, Cupertino/Sunnyvale District Chair; Mark Von Kaenel, Los Gatos/Saratoga District Chair; Jeff Bell, Mark Burns, Eileen Giorgi, Bill Moody, Karen Trolan, At-large Directors; John Tripp, NAR Director; and Simon Offord, Affiliate Chair. The special awards for REALTOR® of the Year, Affiliate of the Year and Spirit of SILVAR will also be presented during the evening.
Thank you in advance to this year’s Installation Sponsors: Los Gatos/Saratoga District; Alain Pinel REALTORS® – Los Gatos, Saratoga and Almaden Valley; MLSListings Inc.; Kenneth Chan – HSBC; Sereno Group; Troy Harrison Property Inspections; Pacific Union Real Estate; and Daddario Roofing Company.
Members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®, Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS® and San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® met with U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo.
Members asked their representatives in Congress to:
1. Restructure Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac and Encourage the Return of Private Capital. Members requested that the chairmen of the House Financial Services Committee and the Senate Banking Committee hold hearings that focus on restructuring the secondary mortgage market, and that the emphasis of these hearings be the crafting of comprehensive bipartisan legislation that resolves the conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They stressed an efficient and adequately regulated secondary market is essential to providing affordable mortgages to consumers; that the federal government must clearly, and explicitly, offer a guarantee of some mortgage instruments; and that the government’s guarantee should ensure a wide range of safe, reliable mortgage products for creditworthy consumers.
2. Preserve homeownership tax policies. As Congress considers proposals to reform the federal tax code, SILVAR REALTORS® said lawmakers should consider the vital role that real estate tax provisions play in the nation’s housing markets and economy, as well as the financial well-being of Americans and their families. As real estate markets continue to recover, Congress must first do no harm to the following:
• Mortgage Interest Deduction: Oppose efforts to change or eliminate the mortgage interest deduction for primary and second homes.
• Property Tax Deduction: Property taxes paid are properly not considered “income” that should be subject to federal income tax. Congress should not tax “income” that doesn’t exist and oppose elimination of the deduction for property taxes.
• Capital Gains Exclusion for Sale of Principal Residence: Individuals can exclude the first $250,000 (and married couples the first $500,000) of gain from the sale of their principal residence from capital gains tax. This provision allows homeowners to build equity and save for retirement and should be maintained.
3. Preserve the Mission and Purpose of the FHA Program. SILVAR REALTORS® asked their representatives to ensure that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) single-family
program has the tools and policies in place to meet its mission of access to safe, affordable mortgage financing to qualified borrowers nationwide. They said FHA’s single-family mortgage insurance program helps preserve private financing options for homebuyers regardless of local, regional or national economic conditions. They asked that the legislators continue support for H.R. 1145 (Waters (D-CA), Capuano (D-MA)), which provides FHA with the flexibility to make necessary changes to the program, provides taxpayer protections against lenders who make errors of material fact, and improves program oversight. They asked that Congress provide FHA with tools, but also protect FHA from any further restrictive requirements that keep more people out of the program.
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The 2012 leadership team of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS (SILVAR) was installed Jan. 12 at Villa Montalvo in Saratoga. California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) treasurer Chris Kutzkey administered the oath of office to the association’s 2012 president Suzanne Yost and the board of directors.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® represents over 4,000 REALTORS® and affiliates engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
Yost is a broker associate with Alain Pinel Realtors, Los Gatos. Also on the leadership team are Carolyn Miller (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), president-elect, and Phyllis Carmichael (Coldwell Banker), treasurer.
In addition to the three lead officers, the following members sit on the 2012 board of directors: Gene Lentz (RE/MAX Distinctive Properties), past president; Jeff Bell (Coldwell Banker), Region 9 chair; Chris Isaacson (Coldwell Banker), Menlo Park/Atherton District chair; Cassie Maas (Luxor Real Estate Group), Los Gatos/Saratoga District chair; Niki Miller Maroko (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), Cupertino/Sunnyvale District chair; Jane Volpe (Midtown Realty), Palo Alto District chair; Denise Welsh (Intero Real Estate), Los Altos/Mountain View District chair; John Tripp (Foundation Trust), NAR director; David Barca (Alain Pinel Realtors), Bill Moody (Referral Realty), Bill Rehbock (Coldwell Banker), Bryan Robertson (Sereno Group), David Tonna (Alain Pinel Realtors), directors at-large; and Richard Miller (RateComb.com), affiliate chair.
A graduate of California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo and Santa Clara University School of Law, Yost was named REALTOR® of the Year in 2006 by the Santa Cruz Association of REALTORS®, Salesperson of the Year in 1982 by the San Luis Obispo Board of REALTORS®, and has served as director and chair of a number REALTOR® committees at the national and state level. She was SILVAR’s 2009 Professional Standards Committee chair, a 2010 board director, and 2011 co-chair of the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy. Yost is a Los Gatos resident.
The 2011 Appreciation Awards were presented to Julia Truesdale Keady (Alain Pinel Realtors), REALTOR® of the Year; Richard Miller (RateComb.com), Affiliate of the Year; Eileen Giorgi (Alain Pinel Realtors), Spirit of SILVAR; and SILVAR board attorney Dave Hamerslough (Rossi, Hamerslough, Reischl and Chuck) and Vickie Naidorf (legal counsel for Coldwell Banker), President’s Award.
As 2009 president, Keady spearheaded the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy, a leadership program designed to identify, train and develop existing and emerging leaders to serve and advance organized real estate. She was also recognized as 2011 C.A.R. Region 9 chair. Presenting the award, 2011 president Gene Lentz noted Keady “has performed in an exemplary fashion in every single committee or assignment that she has been given. They take huge effort and dedication.”
Affiliate of the Year Miller was recognized for “unequivocally embracing and adopting the principles, goals, and purposes of the association.”
As chair of the REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP), a free REALTOR® service assisting senior homeowners with household tasks, Lentz said Giorgi, who also served as 2011 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Trust, “personifies the essence of this award, through her hard work in making RSVP the success it is today.”
Lentz thanked Hamerslough and Naidorf for educating REALTORS® on legal issues and for their efforts in updating the association’s PRDS Forms purchase contract and creating the counties’ advisory.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® says ... 