Aug 29th	Luxury Real Estate Sales $10 Million and Up – Santa Barbara, Montecito, Hope Ranch and Carpinteria CA
2010	Categories: Carpinteria, Hope Ranch, Luxury Real Estate, Montecito, Santa Barbara

When talking about luxury real estate here in the Montecito and Santa Barbara areas, everyone will have their own opinion of what this means and at what price point luxury real estate starts at.  While many other luxury resort areas have very expensive exclusive homes from $3-10 million, Santa Barbara is one of the few areas that also has numerous inventory and sales in the ultra high-end price point...$10 Million and above. Here is a breakdown of the ultra luxury real estate activity here in 2010 as of August 28th (MLS Statistics): Current Active Listings $10 Million and above - 28 Current Pending... Read more

Tags: carpinteria luxury real estate sales, hope ranch luxury real estate sales, montecito luxury real estate sales, santa barbara luxury real estate sales

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Aug 26th	Cash-In Refinancing for your Carpinteria, Goleta or Santa Barbara Area Home
2010	Categories: Carpinteria, Goleta, Random Thoughts & Opinions, Santa Barbara

Here is a great article by Tom Royce regarding Cash-In Refinancing.  With interest rates as low as they currently are, this might be an option for a few people here in the Carpinteria, Goleta and Santa Barbara areas. "If you are underwater on your present mortgage you probably think refinancing is insane. But with the low interest rates available for homeowners with good credit it may make sense. What is Cash In Refinancing? Cash in Refinancing is the cousin of cash out refinancing that was all the rage in the early part of the century. With cash out refinancing you would refinance your... Read more

Tags: carpinteria refinancing, cash in refinancing santa barbara, goleta refinancing

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Aug 25th	Santa Barbara Real Estate Statistics for July 2010
2010	Categories: Market Statistics / Updates

Here is a quick summary glance at some real estate statistics for July 2010. Further Reading: Santa Barbara Market Statistics Santa Barbara Photo Tour Buyer's Resources for the Santa Barbara area Seller's Resources for the Santa Barbara area For information on Real Estate here in Santa Barbara, Montecito and/or our surrounding areas, as well as any other aspects of life in our area, please don’t hesitate to contact Kevin Schmidtchen at Sotheby’s Int’l Realty. Thank you for reading.  I hope you find Santa Barbara Real Estate Voice informative. Please feel free to contact me or comment below with any thoughts. Subscribe to Receive... Read more

Tags: santa barbara real estate statistics july 2010

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Aug 23rd	Why Hire a Real Estate Agent to Sell Your Santa Barbara Home?
2010	Categories: Seller's Resources & Advice

Selling your home for most of us means an undertaking of one of the biggest financial moves of your life.  Your home  not only provides shelter and the enjoyment that it brings to you and/or your family, but it is also a major investment. For some, the initial thought of not using and agent is simply to save $$ on commissions and thus the bottom line.  Reality is that most often an agent will end up saving you $$ than if you go about it alone.  Also, using an agent will also provide a much more enjoyable, professional and relaxing experience. I... Read more

Tags: santa barbara real estate agent, sell santa barbara home

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Aug 16th	New Santa Barbara Downtown Condo Development Approval Located at the Old Von’s Site
2010	Categories: Downtown Neighborhood, Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara already has a good mix of downtown condo projects already completed, as well as several in the pipeline.  It is now time to get ready for a new development that was recently approved by Santa Barbara City Planners. Slated to be a mixed-use condo project located at the site of the old Von's supermarket behind The Historic Arlington Theater, tentative plans call for 37 condominiums, a market and a commercial space.  The new development is proposed to be approximately 100,000 square feet with the max hight standing at 44-feet high as well as an underground garage with 78... Read more

Tags: santa barbara downtown condo projects, santa barbara downtown condos, santa barbara new real estate developments

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Aug 15th	Hope Ranch Real Estate Sales – First 6 Months 2010
2010	Categories: Hope Ranch, Market Statistics / Updates

For the first 6 months of 2010, there were a total of 10 closed real estate sales in the Hope Ranch area.  This is in comparison to only 7 closed sales in the first 6 months of 2009. Below I have broken down these closed sales into price points for comparison of the last 2 years and to see how our upper end real estate market has really started to stabilize and rebound here in the Hope Ranch area in the last several months.  Note: Historically there simply are not as many sales in our high end area of Hope Ranch... Read more

Tags: hope ranch real estate, hope ranch real estate market sales, hope ranch sales 2010

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Aug 11th	What Real Estate Does $350,000 or $500,000 or $1 Million Buy You in Carpinteria CA?
2010	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Carpinteria

Looking for real estate in Carpinteria CA?  Not sure what your money will get you these days. With the real estate market finally stabilizing in most every area here in the Santa Barbara area over the last 6 months, most of Carpinteria prices have fallen around 30-35% from the peak in 2006/2007.  This means a drop in prices back to roughly 2002/2003 price points. So what does $350,000, $500,000 or $1 million buy you these days in Carpinteria? Recently Closed Real Estate in Carpinteria for $365,000 2 bedroom Beachwalk condo in a great location. Walk to downtown shopping, theater, restaurants, and the local Carpinteria... Read more

Tags: carpinteria 1 million real estate, carpinteria real estate, real estate in carpinteria

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Aug 9th	Montecito Real Estate Sales – First 6 Months of 2010
2010	Categories: Market Statistics / Updates, Montecito

For the first 6 months of 2010, there were a total of 77 closed real estate sales in the Montecito area.  This is in comparison to only 55 closed sales in the first 6 months of 2009. Below I have broken down these closed sales into price points for comparison of the last 2 years and to see how our upper end real estate market has really started to stabilize and rebound here in Montecito in the last several months. First 6 Months Comparison 2009 vs. 2010 Sales up to $1,000,000 2009 - 6 Sales 2010 - 12... Read more

Tags: luxury montecito real estate, montecito real estate, montecito real estate sales 2010

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Jun 23rd	What Questions You Need to Ask Your Santa Barbara Real Estate Agent
2010	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice, Seller's Resources & Advice

The decision to sell or buy a home here in the Santa Barbara and Montecito area is not a small decision based on the prices of homes that exist in our community.  Because of this, if you are not careful in who you choose to represent you, you can be throwing away tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Often people will base their decision on which Realtor to use by whom they feel the most comfortable working with, whom they know personally and/or which Realtor is a great referral from someone they trust.  All of these are logical and good... Read more

Tags: montecito listing agent, montecito realtor, santa barbara listing agent, santa barbara real estate, santa barbara realtor

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Jun 14th	Wonderful San Roque Home Short Term Rental Availabe Summer 2010 – Santa Barbara CA
2010	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice

Location: San Roque, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Area, Central Coast, California, USA (2 Miles from Downtown, 10 Miles to Airport, 5 Miles to Ocean) Accommodations:  House, 3 Bedrooms + Detached Unit, 2.5 Baths (Sleeps 2-6) [nggallery id=3] Located just off State street in the desirable San Roque neighborhood and within walking distance to the Mission, the Natural History Museum and the City Rose Garden. Our newly built home (2006) offers a complete gourmet kitchen with stainless steel Viking appliances, granite counter tops, purified water system, spa style tub, steam shower, dual shower heads, rain shower, his and her sinks, vaulted ceilings and a combination... Read more

Tags: santa barbara rental, santa barbara san roque rental, santa barbara vacation rental

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Jun 10th	What is a Pre-approval Letter and Why do I Need It?
2010	Categories: Buyer's Resources & Advice

In today's real estate market here in the Santa Barbara area, one item that you will almost certainly need upon submitting any offer on a home is a pre-approval letter from a lender....especially if there are multiple offers.  What is Pre-approval Letter? In real estate lingo, a pre-approval letter from a  mortgage lender simply means that you have a commitment in writing from a lender to lend you a specific amount of Money to buy a home under certain conditions (e.g., length of the loan and interest rate). Why is This Important? For you as a buyer, it is important to have a... Read more

Tags: pre-approval letter real estate, real estate pre approval, santa barbara pre approved buyer

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Jun 8th	Are you an Ideal Candidate for a Short Sale here in Goleta CA?
2010	Categories: Foreclosures & Bank Owned, Goleta, Short Sales

Tips to Avoiding Foreclosure: Who is the Ideal Candidate for a Short Sale?  The reality for people that are unfortunately facing foreclosure is not something that is taken lightly.  The prospect of not just losing your home, but dealing with all the emotional and financial realities that come with it can be more more than overwhelming. Fortunately, certain people may be in a position to avoid this legal, financial, and emotional turmoil by going the route of a short sale. Do you qualify to obtain relief through a short sale of your home? Here are some of the qualifications a bank is looking... Read more

Tags: avoiding foreclosure, goleta foreclosure, goleta short sale, short sale tips

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