Now in its 99th year, Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara is a beloved Santa Barbara tradition since 1924 dedicated to honoring and preserving the city’s history, spirit, culture, heritage, and traditions. The annual five-day festival, called “Fiesta” by locals, takes place from August 2nd through the 6th, 2023.
Click Read More below for Video and more information about this year’s poster.
The California real estate market has shown signs of recovery in May, with home sales reaching the highest level in eight months and the median home price surpassing $800,000 for the second consecutive month. The market is demonstrating resilience and stability.
The Santa Barbara real estate market remains strong while interest rates hovers around 7%. On July 16, 2023, the current average interest rate for a 30-year mortgage was 7.14%. Source: Bankrate
All Cash purchases have picked up since last year here in Santa Barbara. All Cash sales for June of 2022 were 28%. This year for June was 40%, which may reflect the dramatic hike in interest rates this year.
Click Read More below for graphs, charts, and video.
The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage hit 7.22% on Thursday, according to Mortgage News Daily. That’s the highest point since early November.
For a homebuyer taking out a $400,000 mortgage, the monthly payment of principal and interest rose to $2,720 from $2,637 in just one week.
For sellers, higher mortgage rates have created a so-called golden handcuff effect. The vast majority of homeowners today have mortgages with interest rates below 4% or even below 3%.
“Recent data indicated that nearly 82% of home shoppers reported feeling locked-in by their existing low-rate mortgage, while around 1 in 7 homeowners without a selling plan cited their current low rate as their reason for remaining on the sidelines,” said Jiayi Xu, an economist at Realtor.com.
Because of that, there is currently a critical shortage of homes for sale, with year-to-date new listings now 20% behind last year’s pace.
Click Read More Below for the entire post and GMA video on Mortgage Rates and Decoding the Real Estate market. (7.7.2023) Image from the World Property Journal
Click READ MORE below for video
The A.C. Postel Memorial Rose Garden, also known as “The Road Garden,” is adjacent to the Santa Barbara Mission and contains over 1,500 rose plants that are typically in bloom between April and November. The park has a large grassy area making it a great recreational area for families and friends. Although there are no picnic tables, it is a popular destination for picnics on the grass where you can enjoy breathtaking views of the Santa Barbara mission – the “Queen” of California’s 21 missions. Dogs are allowed on leash.
Click Read More below for video
Goleta offers a high quality of life with a blend of urban amenities and a relaxed coastal atmosphere. The City has a strong sense of community with numerous parks, recreational facilities, and community events. The cost of living, while relatively high by national standards, is lower than neighboring cities in southern Santa Barbara County.
Click Read More below for the full post.
Even though the summer homebuying season is officially here, the housing market is still experiencing a winter chill.
The national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate remains elevated compared to last year, hitting a year-to-date high of 6.79% the week ending June 1, according to Freddie Mac.
Though the median existing-home sales price edged lower year-over-year for the fourth consecutive month—a promising sign for home shoppers—experts don’t expect substantial, nationwide price declines anytime soon.
Click Read more below for the entire post and videos.
Recently CBS’s Sunday Morning show with Jane Pauley featured renowned architect Jeanne Gang. Although there is no Santa Barbara connection here we hope you’re a fan of Design and Architecture and will enjoy this video.
Jeanne Gang, arguably the most important female architect working today, heads her own firm, Studio Gang, which is pushing the boundaries of the good that architecture can do, for connecting communities and for the environment. Gang talked with correspondent Martha Teichner about her most recent project, an expansion of New York’s American Museum of Natural History, and about the skyscrapers, airport terminal, and other civic spaces she has designed in her hometown of Chicago meant to transform spaces, outside and within.
Click Read More below to go to the full post and video.
The annual Santa Barbara Summer Solstice Parade and Festival has been a City tradition since the early 1970s. Each year spectators line the streets to see the homegrown parade and an amazing outpouring of creativity from the community.
In its 49th year, the Solstice Parade and Festival is the largest arts event in Santa Barbara County, drawing crowds of over 100,000 spectators and participants from around the world. The 2023 parade will start at noon, June 24 at the corner of Santa Barbara St. and Ortega and proceed to Alameda Park for the festival.
The festival will take place Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, June 23rd, 24th & 25th. The festival is free and open to the public and will include a full musical lineup as well as a variety of food and merchant vendors and a beer and wine garden.
For more information about the Parade and Celebration click Read More below.
We are in one of the most foundationally strong housing markets of our lifetime because homeowners are going to fight to keep their current mortgage rate and they have a tremendous amount of equity. This is yet another reason things are fundamentally different than in 2008. We may be in one of the strongest Real Estate Markets in a long time. When you look at the numbers today, the one thing that stands out is the strength of this housing market.
Here are two fundamentals that prove this point. Click “Read More” below to continue reading.
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