We will help you find that special present that keeps on giving.

Happy Holidays from The Lawhead Team!

The Lawhead Team would like to share this beautiful home just listed in Carlsbad.

This beautiful home in Carlsbad is a must see! It is located at 2818 Avenida Valera, Carlsbad, CA 92009.

Immaculate and upgraded Fairways Plan 1 single level home in move-in condition. Beautiful hardwood flooring. Slab granite countertops. Central air. Ceiling fans. Plantation shutters. Covered patio. Drought-efficient landscaping. Remodeled master bathroom. Custom interior paint. Very desirable gated community adjacent to the Omni La Costa Resort’s golf course with 7 interior parks, private streets and two private walking trails accessed only from this neighborhood.

Take the virtual tour here: http://www.propertypanorama.com/instaview/snd/150047589

The Lawhead Team would like to share the latest “One Cool Thing” from the California Association of Realtors on the impact that home staging has on a house for sale.

Most homeowners know it is important to keep a home clean, bright, and free from clutter while it is on the market for sale. But, sometimes taking the extra step to stage a home can make a difference in how a buyer values it and the price a seller might get for it.

49% of REALTORS® representing buyers say home staging impacts most buyer’s final decision.

Top reasons a buyer’s decision is impacted by a staged home

• 81% – Easier to visualize the property as a future home
• 46% – More willing to walk through a home viewed online
• 45% – Will positively impact home value of home if decorated to buyer’s taste
• 28% – Overlook other properly faults
• 10% – Will negatively impact home value if decorated against buyer’s tastes
• 5% – More suspect of home features

Source: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® 2015 Profile of Home Staging

Contact The Lawhead Team if you or someone you know may want to call this lovely property in Aviara home.

The Lawhead Team would like to share our latest listing we have in La Costa.

Located at 7210 Plaza de La Costa, this beautiful 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo is located in a gated community and is priced at $410,000.

View the virtual tour of this gorgeous La Costa property here.

If you are in the market for an attached home such as a town-home or condominium, The Lawhead Team would like to share the latest statistics with our readers on home prices for North San Diego County:

Single-Family Attached Home Prices:

• The North San Diego County median-priced single-family attached (SFA) home increased just 0.54 percent, to $322,813 in March 2014 from $321,083 in February 2014.  Non-North San Diego County single-family attached home median price fell 1.47 percent, from $295,000 in February 2014 to $290,650 in March 2014.
• North San Diego County single-family attached home median price increased 1.83 percent year-over, compared to $317,000 in March 2013 – a 26-month trend of a year-over price increases.  Non-North County SFA median year-over price increased 9.68 percent, compared to $265,000 in March 2013.
• San Diego County SFA home median price increased 0.17 percent, to $300,500 in March 2014 from $300,000 in February 2014.  Year-over county median price increased 5.44 percent from February 2014.
• The median number of days-on-market for North County SFA homes sold declined, to 21 days in March 2014 from 30 days in February 2014.  The average number of days-on-market fell to 51 days in March 2014, from 52 days in February 2014.
• The number of sold single-family attached home units increased 22.41 percent in March 2014 from February 2014, and the number of sold SFA units in non-North County Zip Codes increased 9.29 percent in March 2014 from February 2014.
• Year-over SFA sales in North San Diego County dropped 11.53 percent, compared to March 2013. Non-North County year-over sold units decreased 18.26, compared to March 2013.
• Single-family attached home listings (active and contingent) in North San Diego County increased 2.88 percent in March 2014 from February 2014, and decreased 4.35 percent year-over from March 2013.  San Diego County SFA listings (active and contingent) increased 2.67 percent in March 2014 from February 2014, and increased 2.52 percent year-over compared to March 2013.

When The Lawhead Team isn’t busy helping people find their dream homes, we love to take a break and play golf. We would like to share some helpful tips from the PGA:

• To many people think that a sand wedge is just for bunker shots. The sand wedge should be used for sand shots as well as most pitch shots to the green.  The sand wedge whether a 54-degree or 58-degree has “bounce” on the sole of the club.
• A carpenter’s chalk-line and a CD disc are great putting aids to have in your golf bag. The chalk-line is useful to help you with your alignment and stroke. Find a straight six to ten foot putt on a practice green. Snap a chalk-line from the hole back to desired distance.
• A pitch short or short chip shot from short grass or a tight lie can be a challenge even for the very best players. Make a few practice swings and brush the ground in a way you would do it if the ball was there.
• If you miss the green and your ball ends up in a closely mown area don’t forget about the hybrid putt.  Approach the shot just as you would a putt.  Use your putting grip, stance, pre-shot routine and stroke.  You will find that with a little practice you will start getting up and down.
• When the wind picks up you want to choose a club that is more than what you would normally choose.  Go through your normal pre-shot routine and then swing easy.  The windier it gets the easier you should swing.  You will quickly find that your golf ball is boring through the wind and not ballooning.
• With over 60% of your strokes coming from inside of 100 yards, it is essential that you spend a proportionate amount of time on your short game as you practice.  You should devote most of your short game practice to putting and chipping.  These two shots make up the majority of your short game strokes.
• Is your golf bag organized?  Having your golf bag organized will help you greatly as you improve your skills.  Knowing where each club is within the bag, you will not lose focus on the shot you have planned, while you search for the proper club.
• A greenside bunker shot is so much easier than most think. It is nothing more than a “fat pitch.” In a greenside bunker we want to hit the sand first.
• The easiest way to learn the golf swing is to relate it to another learned movement. The golf swing is a rotary movement; it contains a throwing element similar to baseball. For the non-athletes, it would be like skipping a pebble.

golf tips are from the PGA‘s website.

The Lawhead Team’s latest HomeDex report for single-family detached homes in North County San Diego:

• The median price for all homes in North San Diego County – single-family detached and single-family attached – increased to $495,000 in June 2013 from $485,000 in May 2013.
• The median-priced single-family detached (SFD) home in North San Diego County increased 1.71 percent, from $555,500 in May 2013 to $565,000 in June 2013. June 2013 was the highest SFD median prices in North County since January 2008. Year-over median SFD price in North San Diego County increased 20.21 percent, from $470,000 in June 2012 – the eleventh month of year-over median price increases (the last four months exceeding 20 percent).
• The single-family detached median price in non-North County Zip Codes increased 2.32 percent, to $429,750 in June 2013 from $420,000 in May 2013. Year-over non-North County median price increased 23.49 percent, from $348,000 in June 2012 – this is a fifteenth month trend of year-over median price increases.
• The median SFD price in San Diego County increased 3.64 percent, to $485,000 in June 2013 from $467,950 in May 2013.
• Year-over county-level single-family detached median price jumped 24.36 from June 2012 — the thirteenth month that year-over median price has increased.
• The median days-on-market for North San Diego County single-family detached homes sold increased from 18 days in May 2013 to 19 days in June 2013.
• The SFD median price-per-square foot jumped from $252 in May 2013 to $261 in June 2013 – the highest price in over five years — and a 23.41 percent increase year-over from June 2012.
• The number of sold SFD units in North San Diego County decreased 5.76 percent from May 2013 to June 2013. Year-over sold SFD units decreased 0.88 percent compared to June 2012.
• Single-family detached total sales volume increased 19.45 percent year-over from June 2012, the fifteenth month of year-over increases.
• SFD listings (active and contingent) in North San Diego County increased 5.97 percent from May 2013 to June 2013, but were down 26.1 percent year-over compared to June 2012 – continuing a 22-month trend of year-over declines in listings.
• SFD listings (active and contingent) in San Diego County increased 8.26 percent from May 2013 to June 2013, and decreased 26.77 percent year-over from June 2012.

Housing Affordability:

• The monthly payment – including principal, interest, property taxes, and insurance – for the median-priced SFD home in North San Diego County increased from $2,647 in May 2013 (based on a conventional mortgage), to $2,649 in June 2013.
• The monthly payment for the median-priced single-family detached home in non-North San Diego County increased from $2,001 in May 2013, to $2,015 in June 2013.
• The percent of San Diego County households that could afford the median-priced single-family detached home in North County remained at 28 percent in June 2013, according to the North San Diego County HomeDexTM, and the affordability percentage in non-North County Zip Codes remained at 41 percent in June 2013.
• In June 2012, the affordability percentage was 33 percent in North San Diego County and 47 percent in non-North San Diego County.
• The HomeDexTM affordability percentage for all homes in North San Diego County – single-family detached and single-family attached together – remained 34 percent in June 2013.

The Lawhead Team would like to share some recent facts from the HomeDex Report just released a few days ago. Check out the facts for North County’s Single Family Detached Homes:

• The median price for all homes in North San Diego County – single-family detached homes and single-family attached – increased from $470,000 in April 2013 to $485,000 in May 2013.
• The median-priced single-family detached (SFD) home in North San Diego County rose 3.83 percent, to $555,500 in May 2013 from $535,000 in April 2013. Year-over median single-family detached homes prices in North San Diego County increased 23.72 percent, compared to $449,000 in May 2012, making a ten-month trend of year-over median price increases (the last three months exceeding 25 percent). Spring 2013 has reported the highest median prices in North County since mid-2008.
• The single-family detached homes median price in non-North County Zip Codes rose five percent, from $400,000 in April 2013 to $420,000 in May 2013.  Year-over non-North County median price increased 21.74 percent, compared to $345,000 in May 2012, a 14month trend of year-over median price increases.
• The median single-family detached homes price in San Diego County increased four percent, from $450,000 in April 2013 to $467,950 in May 2013.  Year-over county-level SFD median price increased 23.14 from May 2012, the 12th month of year-over median price increases.
• The median days-on-market for North San Diego County single-family detached homes sold, fell from 19 days in April 2013 to 18 days in May 2013.
• The SFD median price-per-square foot increased to $252 in May 2013, from $247 in April 2013, and increased 20.96 percent year-over from May 2012.
• The number of sold SFD units in North San Diego County increased 11.49 percent in May 2013 from April 2013.  Year-over sold SFD units increased 12.54 percent from May 2012.
• Single-family detached homes total sales volume jumped 35.33 percent year-over compared to May 2012, the 14th straight year-over monthly increase.
• SFD listings (active and contingent) in North San Diego County increased 5.35 percent in May 2013 from April 2013, but decreased 34.56 percent year-over compared to May 2012 – continuing a 21-month trend of year-over declines in listings.
• Single-family detached homes listings (active and contingent) in San Diego County increased 3.1 percent in May 2013 from April 2013, and decreased 35.46 percent year-over from May 2012.

The Lawhead Team came across a great article from CNN Money about the bidding wars Southern California is experiencing in the housing industry. Check out the article:

The home bidding wars are back!

By Les Christie @CNNMoney April 5, 2013: 10:01 AM ET

The competition has been most intense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California have been drawing competing bids.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The bidding wars are back. Seemingly overnight, many of the nation’s major housing markets have gone from stagnant to sizzling, with for-sale listings drawing offers from a large number of house hunters.

In March, 75% of agents with broker Redfin said their clients’ offers were countered by rival bids, up from 56% who said so in late 2011.

The competition has been most intense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California drew competing bids during the month. And at least two-third of listings in Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle and New York generated bidding wars.

“The only question is not whether a new listing will get multiple bids but how many it will get,” said Kris Vogt, who manages 14 Coldwell Banker offices in the Sacramento area. One home in an Elk Grove, Calif., subdivision recently received 62 separate bids. The final sale price was for more than $150,000, well above its $129,000 asking price.

In Cambridge, Mass., two condos that could be combined into one large home hit the market two weeks ago for $800,000 each, according to Pat Villani, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in New England.

“The brokers stopped taking names after the number of bidders reached 250,” she said. The winning bidder offered $2 million for both units.

Homebuyers eager to purchase before home prices and mortgage rates rise are finding few homes for sale as sellers hold out for better deals, said Glenn Kelman, Redfin’s CEO.

Many homeowners are still underwater, owing more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, and they want to wait until selling becomes profitable again. By doing so, they can avoid short sales, which carry big hits on credit scores, 85 to 160 points, according to FICO.

Read entire article from CNN Money on Bidding Wars here: http://money.cnn.com/2013/04/04/real_estate/bidding-wars/index.html