Most of us saw this coming. The very point of the home buyer tax credit was to pump life into the market and entice buyers to move off the fence. Take it away and you’re merely peeling back the covers from the real situation, showing that many potential buyers are tepid, scared of losing their jobs, optimistic that prices will come down just a little more, or simply not able to get a loan.

Amid this news, the New York Times featured a story saying that housing is no longer considered a means to build wealth.

But that’s where I need to stop and think.

There’s no getting around the fact that the market is slow and expected to be slow through the end of the year. True.

And there’s no question that flipping houses is not the part-time moneymaking hobby it once was during boom years. Very true.

But to swear off real estate as a means to build wealth is a bit dramatic. It’s true that in most cases, a buyer cannot look at a house solely as a monetary investment. It’s simply not that – it’s more. It’s a roof over your head. It’s the place where your children grow from toddlers to young adults. It’s where you spend your days and nights living your life.

A home is shelter, but it’s also ownership. Last I checked, you can’t really put a price on the kind of pride that comes with homeownership. Ask anyone whether it’s a dream of theirs to own a home and you’ll likely hear a resounding “yes.”

Again, it’s the intangibles of real estate that will keep this market alive.

A home is not a casino slot machine. It’s not a mutual fund. But it is a relatively safe way to spend your monthly housing budget. In the long-term, homes will still return value to their owners – and while it may not be in the form of doubling your returns, it is a true asset, a thing that you own free and clear after the mortgage is paid.

At the end of the loan, it’s still yours, not the landlord’s or the bank’s. Yours.

So even amid a declining market while analysts and pundits decry real estate a non-wealth builder, a dead end, myself and 60 million+ other homeowners disagree. We decided to put our money into our homes and are proud of it. I don’t think that sentiment is going to change overnight.

Here is my take:

Home buyers: The best news is first. Buyers have it made right now. Interest rates are now at all-time lows. Not historic or near historic, but all-time lows.

And of course the higher inventory and lower demand in many markets gives the buyer more to choose from and more negotiating power simply because there is less competition from other buyers.

Bottom line for home buyers is that this news is good – excellent, in fact.

Home sellers: Simple math and physics tell us that when one side of a scale is up, the other side is down. Sellers may be on the down side of the equation here, but there is an upside. Fortunately, for the seller, this simple math can never account for the intangibles like an elite neighborhood, amazing schools, or the emotion that often is real estate.

Every sale needs just one buyer – the right one. When this occurs, the seller gets what he or she needs and moves on.

Bottom line for home sellers is that it may be tough, but definitely not impossible. If your location is coveted or your home has a lot of other appeal, there’s no need to fret.

The housing industry: Slowdown for the second half of the year, but not a halt. Be prepared for longer deals and more hurdles. These may be frustrating times, but many successful entrepreneurs are made in times of economic hardship. Be patient, work hard and don’t be afraid to innovate. Now is not the time to retreat.

Bottom line for the industry is that these slow times will weed out the weakest professionals.

Renters: Fewer home buyers can mean more renters so look for much more competition when you’re searching for your next rental. Rents may climb in some markets.

Bottom line for renters is that it may not be the best time to look for a new place. If you are financially and psychologically ready to become a homeowner, you might want to check out your buying options instead.

The economy: A slow housing market is not the greatest news for the economy as a whole. But the underlying factors causing the slow housing market are actually of more concern to the economy right now – slow job growth, massive deficit, deflation risks.

Bottom line is that the housing market will continue to be a topic of discussion in Washington. Look for more programs or program ideas to help tip the scales to faster growth.

To conclude, you see there are winners and losers in the low-demand, high-supply scenario. It’s all in how you see it. Opportunities are there for everyone.

How does this affect homes and home values? Since everything under the sun has to be disclosed when selling a house, here’s a simplified after-effect of installing artificial turf in a public park:

1. Turf on athletic fields at public park  = Year round sports instead of seasonal
2. Year round sports = Constant soccer, baseball, basketball games going on year round
3. Constant games going on = Lots of cars parking on streets in front of homes
4. Lots of cars parking on streets = Impact on ‘peace and quiet’ of neighborhood
5. No peace and quiet = Perceived value of homes goes down
6. Home values going down = Local residents do not want artificial turf

In the SJ Merc the other day was this article.  Here are some of the salient highlights from the article:

With San Carlos poised to start installing artificial turf at Highlands Park today, a group of residents who sued to block the project say the city is taking a big risk by breaking ground before a judge has ruled on the lawsuit.

They say the city shouldn’t start the project until a San Mateo County Superior Court judge weighs in on the lawsuit filed by Save San Carlos Parks, which argues the city didn’t properly review the new field’s potential environmental effects on health and traffic. Judge Marie Weiner is expected to rule by Aug. 25.

If Weiner decides the city must do further environmental work, it will have to pause construction and leave the park unusable and in a state of disrepair indefinitely, said Greg Harris, a member of the residents’ group. He said it’s worth waiting another two weeks for a ruling on a project that was conceived a decade ago.

City officials counter that they could take a financial hit if they don’t proceed with installing turf, which has been done without controversy in other Peninsula cities but has been one of the hottest topics in San Carlos for years.

Officials say the $1.7 million bid from Interstate Grading and Paving, which the city council accepted in February, is an exceptionally low price due to a job-hungry construction industry and an Italian turf manufacturer who is offering a discount to break into the American market.

Harris dismissed the cost argument, saying it’s possible the city could get the same bid or an even lower one if it advertises the project again after the judge’s decision.

The city plans to fence off the 3.5-acre lower athletic field at Highlands Park today for site preparation work. Excavation and grading work will start next week, said Public Works Director Robert Weil. If all goes well, the project will be finished by the end of the year.

Weil acknowledged that the park will be unusable if the city has to pause construction to do further environmental studies, which could take months, but he said officials will ensure the park doesn’t pose a hazard.

Proponents say the artificial surface will lower maintenance costs and allow the field to be used year-round. The grass fields, on the other hand, must periodically be closed so they can recover from heavy use.

But opponents have said the extra use allowed by the new surface will bring more traffic to the neighborhood. They also had objected to the use of rubber pellets between the grass blades, though the city has since decided to use an organic infill instead to address those concerns.

“We’re not going to delay a project that will benefit thousands of people because a small neighborhood group has filed a lawsuit against us,” Klein said.

Don’t Take Shortcuts

Firstly, please, please, please, work with a mortgage lender who has a proven record of being able to secure a loan.  This has got to be one of the most important to-do’s before you go out shopping for a home.  This is as important, and may even be more important than the loan rate you lock in.

Yet, with still so many choices out there – direct lenders, mortgage brokers, etc. – you may ask yourself, how do I find a good one?  The best source, I’ve found, is to get recommendations from friends, relatives, or trusted realtors.

A good lender who’s truly looking out for your best interest should ultimately be able to tell you what you can and cannot afford.  A great lender will go above and beyond to get the job done.

Do Your Homework

Where are your downpayment funds going to come from? From your own savings? Cashing out some WebVan stock? A gift from your solvent parents?  Whatever the source of your funds, you have GOT to make sure you let your mortgage lender know early on in the process.  Any  funds that are NOT coming directly from your own savings, might be subject to major scrutiny by the lender – and you may find yourself having to provide a boatload of documentation showing where the money’s coming from, or, in the case of a gift, additional scrutiny on whoever was giving you the money.  And of course, as Murphy’s Law would have it, that kind of scrutiny can very well happen at the 11^th hour when you least expect it, probably right before you’re supposed to close escrow.

Final Thoughts

Be realistic about your loan contingency period. Don’t put it at 14 days if you’re not 110% positive that your lender can do it. Better to be conservative and ask for more days than you think you’ll need.

Be sure your lender knows of any red flags during the contingency period. Find this out early on in the process. Continually ask your lender what the current conditions to close (CTCs) are, and are they being met.

Remove your loan contingency as close to on time as possible. No one, particularly the sellers and the sellers’ agent, get more stressed out when loan contingencies aren’t removed on time.

The headline says it all – the silver lining. It seems obvious, but for those lucky enough to still be employed, these are great times to be a consumer.

Just look at interest rates for mortgages. If you’re employed and looking to buy a house, you’re part of a group of borrowers who will lock in rates so low even buyers from a few months ago would cry. 4.375% percent (APR 4.579%) on a 30-year fixed!! That is something to brag about. Even an $8,000 home buyer tax credit cannot beat the savings achieved on these borrowing costs.

Further tipping the scales in favor of today’s employed are wages. According to the NYT article, “The typical jobless person has been out of work six months. The typical worker has received a raise.” Since the start of the recession in December 2007, real average hourly pay has risen nearly 5 percent.

This is obviously bad news for those who have been out of work for some time. But again, the bright side: Rising wages are good news for housing. And while the market may not see a huge pop from this right away, higher wages at least provide confidence for those buyers who are in the market today, and those sellers who are hoping for a match.

Remember: Every home sale needs just one qualified buyer. Your pool of buyers starts to increase with every job that is secured.

A lifeboat for unemployed homeowners

But even amid bad times for the jobless, there was some good news out of Washington last week. The Obama Administration is prepping $3 billion in financial assistance to aid homeowners in the states most affected by unemployment.

The assistance program will send $2 billion in aid to state Housing Finance Agencies for programs for borrowers who are struggling to make payments due to job loss. Another $1 billion in aid will come from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to provide up to 24 months of assistance to homeowners who are at risk of foreclosure.

So you see, it’s not all bad right now. Let’s hope it works!

Distressed home sales continue to represent this opportunity. Distressed homes – those homes that are in danger of going into foreclosure or are for sale because the homeowners defaulted on their mortgage – were 32 percent of home sales last month, compared with 31 percent in May, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors.

What’s happening here and why should we pay attention?

In a word: inventory. Distressed properties more and more are making up a huge chunk of the inventory in many markets around the world (not just here in the U.S.). But wait! Remember that great Warren Buffet quote about when to get interested in an investment? He said:

“Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can’t buy what is popular and do well.”

At first thought, you’d think that something that already represents a third of the market for home sales is past the tipping point. But I don’t believe that. We’ve been doing very well at Intero by studying the market and moving swiftly to seize distressed opportunities. So should you.

Earlier this summer, I spoke about distresses properties at a prestigious real estate conference in Singapore. The distressed market is nothing to run from, folks. In fact, the true real estate lovers saw this coming long ago and stashed cash accordingly.

And sure, for the average consumer, buying a distressed property is going to be a mind-boggling experience (if it even happens in the first place). But all the more reason to study the process and figure out how to make it work if you’re really interested in pursuing this opportunity. When preparation meets opportunity you get success.

You just have to remember another quote from the great Warren Buffet:

“Risk comes from not knowing what you’re doing.”

Which takes us back to that studying process and being prepared.

Where can you learn about the market for distressed properties? We have knowledgeable agents who can help. Many are specializing in this field right now for this very reason. Even so, I’d advise you to do some reading on your own as well. Take the time to choose the right agent and be sure you’re armed financially.

Just because we’re in a “slow” housing market, doesn’t mean you can’t profit in the end.

Two local nonprofits got some extra help this month thanks to a local nonprofit organization, The Intero Foundation. The Intero Foundation gave grants totaling $18,000 to Community Solutions and the Learning and Loving center. The grants will support the organization’s shared mission of providing help to children in need.

Community Solutions, a nonprofit organization based out of Morgan Hill, received $8,000. Its mission is to provide a comprehensive spectrum of prevention, intervention, treatment, and residential services to the communities of South Santa Clara County, South San Jose and San Benito County. The Learning and Loving, Education Center, also based out of Morgan Hill, is a non-profit educational project lead by the Sisters of the Presentation. The $10,000 grant they received will go towards the work of the Learning & Loving Education Center by providing educational opportunities and outreach to low-income immigrant women and their children who are living in south Santa Clara County of Northern California.

“In these challenging economic times, more and more people are in need of assistance and the Intero Foundation believes that by working together we can help solve these challenges,” said Russ Warrick, Realtor and Intero Morgan Hill Foundation representative. “We are proud to present a check for all the hard work these two wonderful organizations do to support the kids in our community.”

The Intero Foundation is a non–profit organization founded in 2003 that has raised more than $1.5 million to benefit children living in the communities we serve. The Intero Foundation is funded, promoted and governed by the real estate agents at Intero Real Estate services.  All members of the Intero community – executives, staff and agents – donate their time to further the Foundation’s mission.

To date, the Intero Foundation has lent its support to over 70 local charities – organizations that range in size and mission, but all work to positively impact the growth and well being of children by enhancing their education and personal development.

The Intero Foundation, founded in 2002, continues to impact the growth and well being of children and youth in the communities we serve, by providing grants to organizations. Year to date, we’ve already given close to $1.7 million to non-profit organizations throughout the Bay Area – thanks to the real estate agents and events like the Intero Foundation Golf Tournament.

With a lunch provided by Old Republic Home Warranty and other generous sponsors such as Bank of America cheering on the golfers as they were teeing off, this was one of the best golf tournaments Intero has put on! Nearly $4,000 was raised in raffle tickets alone!

Gino Belfari, President and CEO of Intero Real Estate Services, added to the excitement, by riding around in a decorated golf cart and mingling with the golfers, sponsors and spectators. Many other supporters joined in for a dinner, auction and music afterwards providing a perfect end to a perfect day.

A big thank you to our sponsors:

Bank of America, Old Republic Home Warranty, Zoom Copiers, Fidelity Home Warranty, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, Health E Centric, Intero Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor, Franco Uomo, Campo Di Bocce, JCP-LGS Disclosures, Property I.D., Cutco, Homeguard, Citrusolution, Daddario Construction, Marvin Davis Construction Inc., Hammer Auto, Corefact, C.J. Olson Cherries, Beverly’s Baskets, Insightful Services, Win Home Inspections, Jon R. Crase Construction, Passport Unlimited, and Kris Myers & Cathy Jackson.

If you are interesting in donating to the Intero Foundation or know an organization that may benefit from a grant, please go to our new website at www.interofoundation.org. Thanks again to everyone for a great event and raising awareness to this wonderful cause.

Let’s dig in:

• New home sales were up 23.6 percent in June, according to Census Bureau statistics. And while this was a great increase from May, the rate was 16.7 percent below the level in June 2009.
• Also, home prices rose in May, according to the latest S&P/Case-Shiller 10-city and 20-city home prices indexes. Prices in the 10-city index increased 1.2 percent and prices in the 20-city index increased 1.3 percent. Compared with a year earlier, the 10-city index rose 5.4 percent and the 20-city reading increased 4.6 percent.
• Existing home sales slowed 5.1 percent in June from May, according to figures reported by the National Association of Realtors. It was the second month of decline for existing sales, which many say was partly due to the expiration of the housing tax credit (contracts had to be in place by April 30 to qualify). But the June sales figures were up 9.8 percent from June 2009. NAR also said the inventories were up and prices were stable.

Now, the fun part: what does all this mean?

Well, first let’s not overlook the fact that there are indeed sales happening. So even if you’re of the “sky is falling” mind, you can’t deny that people are still buying and selling homes.

Second, we all pretty much knew that home sales would dip in the months after the tax credit expired. While the tax credit may not have created transactions out of thin air, it certainly put a fire under a great number of buyers to move quickly. Now the market doesn’t have those buyers who, under normal circumstances, may have bought in the summer instead of the spring.

Third, the fact that prices held steady and showed some increase is a good sign.

The reality here is that the housing market moves on. Life events will continue to drive transactions. Sure, times are tough for home sellers and those of us who work in this industry. But we at Intero actually see these times as a great opportunity to succeed. There are some great deals out there for today’s buyers and investors. Borrowing conditions are fantastic for those who qualify.

These are times when innovation really does stand out and make a difference.

I came across an article that dove deeper into the reasoning behind why Gen Y delays home buying compared to boomers. Based on a panel discussion sponsored by the Urban Land Institute, the article mentions that most in Gen Y do not have the resources to buy a home in their 20s. They tend to take breaks from work to travel, which can cost them lost wages and earning potential at this point in their careers.

The article also looks at affordability:

“(T)he average Baby Boomer could afford a home with $48,000 annual income if they bought a home in the early 1980s whereas a Generation Y household would have to bring in $142,000 per year to afford a home today.”

Obviously, all of these things have an impact on the housing market as young, first-time buyers are essential to the move-up market.

What strikes me about this trend of Gen Y delaying home buying is that there’s not a bigger conversation going on. Is it really that Gen Y does not want to buy homes? Or is it that they can’t afford the homes that are available to them? Are they really looking for a different type of ownership than we’re used to?

I think it’s important to engage in this conversation. Statistics show that Gen Y, estimated at 70 million individuals, is even larger than the baby boomer generation. Their habits, preferences and economic situation will have a big impact on real estate.

The current slowdown we’re seeing in real estate is no doubt caused by economic forces – job loss, foreclosures, tightened credit. But in the recovery, there is this other aspect that’s not being discussed as much – this “lifestyle” choice that is a little fuzzier than what we’re used to.

The good news is that lifestyle is exactly what real estate agents are good at understanding. Who better can tell you the little things about a neighborhood or city that don’t get captured in an online listing or for-sale sign? I believe that the more we understand each other, the easier it will be to accommodate Gen Y’s lifestyle choices.