Wathen-Castanos

Prices have dropped, making homes more affordable

Thursday, Sep. 23, 2010
By Michael Miyamoto / The Dinuba Sentinel

Ever since real estate prices reached astronomical levels a few years back, the industry has tumbled drastically.
That’s no secret.

But how is the market in Dinuba faring these days?

It appears to be pretty similar to what’s happening in the rest of the country.

Local real estate brokers are saying sales have slowed considerably since the industry’s peak days earlier this decade.

On the upside, buyers have tremendous opportunities to purchase new and existing homes on the cheap.

In other words, right now, it’s clearly a buyer’s market.

Here is a cursory look at what’s happening locally.

“It’s the slowest I’ve seen it, and I’ve been in this business for 27 or 28 years,” Terrence Barnes, a real estate broker and owner of Barnes Realty in Dinuba, said.

Because it’s such a cyclical business, Barnes said he couldn’t come up with specific numbers.

“It’s not near as much as it was some years ago,” he said of his home sales in general.

Prices have clearly plummeted. For example, Barnes said there is a home in Orosi that was initially offered at $200,000. It is now under $100,000.

Nowadays, someone will pick up a good home and convert it to a rental.

“Rents have not come down like home prices,” Barnes said.

He also said he sees more investor-type buyers re-entering the market for that very purpose.

Could this be a sign that the housing industry is rebounding?

“I think real estate is picking up,” Doris Hebert, a broker with Guarantee Real Estate of Reedley and a Dinuba resident, said.
“Last year was probably the slowest market for me in my 32 years in the business,” Hebert said. “It’s much slower now, there’s no question about that.”

Part of the reason is that lenders have become skittish.

“It’s harder to get people qualified for loans now,” Hebert said. “Lenders are really gun-shy.”

In recent years, Hebert said she has seen a “huge increase” in foreclosures and short sales.

There is an upside to all of this, however.

“There are some wonderful deals to be had,” Hebert said. “There are some excellent deals to be had.”

Mortgages are now commonly in the range of 4-4.75 percent, according to Hebert, and it’s not unheard of for someone to be approved for a 15-year loan at 3.75 percent.

Even a subtle difference in the terms of loans can prove crucial. For instance, a $120,000 loan at 6 percent over 30 years will cost someone a tad under $720 a month.

But the same loan at 4.5 percent will cost slightly more than $600 per month, Hebert said. Moreover, a 4 percent loan over 15 years will cost $887.63 a month, but the term is half that of a traditional 30-year mortgage.

City building official Rick Hartley said the Muirfield subdivision in the southeast part of town and the Viscaya subdivision in northwest Dinuba are really the only places where homes are being built right now.

But both subdivisions are putting up their houses “like crazy,” Hartley said. “They both want to get all the homes finished as soon as possible.”

Muirfield is 229 lots, and the first of three phases has already been completed. It is now in its second phase, and it has about 20 homes currently under construction. Overall, it is about two-thirds of the way done.

Viscaya is also three phases. It has 364 lots in its subdivision, and it, too, is in the second phase.

It has about 30 houses under construction. Overall, Viscaya is about a third of the way toward completion.

Muirfield is on the east side of Crawford Avenue, between Sierra Way and Kamm Avenue. Viscaya is just off the Euclid Avenue, with a north entrance off West Saginaw Avenue and a south entrance on West Nebraska Avenue.

The construction superintendent at each site comes into Hartley’s office on a regular basis for building permits.

Otherwise, Hartley said he has been really busy of late dealing with home improvement-type projects like new roofs and water heaters.
Wathen-Castanos Hybrid Homes, Inc. of Fresno is developing Viscaya.

Peter Castanos, sales manager, said Viscaya has built out 80 homes in the last eight months. The company uses the word “Hybrid” in its name because all of its buildings are geared toward creating optimum “energy efficiency.”

Prices start at $125,900 and go up to $186,900. Wathen-Castanos picks up the closing costs on all homes, Castanos said.

Viscaya homes range from 1,100 square feet with three bedrooms and two bathrooms to a 2,200 square foot version with four bedrooms, three bathrooms and a three-car garage.

Wathen-Castanos prides itself on being family-owned and local. It has been building homes in the Central Valley for more than 80 years.

Viscaya is attractive to buyers, Castanos said, because it is in a great location, and its homes are affordable and energy efficient.
The prevailing interest rates are “fantastic,” Castanos said.

But he cautioned that people shouldn’t be lulled into a false sense of security. The rates have been low for a long time, and no one should presume they will remain that way forever, he added.

Muirfield homes start at $144,990 and go up to $193,490, according to a fact sheet. Sizes range from 1,632 square feet to 2,532 square feet, so Muirfield’s buildings are larger than Viscaya’s.

K.Hovnanian Homes is the developer.

Victoria Vasuvat, a sales consultant at the K.Hovnanian model home at the Muirfield site, said 51 homes have been sold from November 2008 to October 2009, and that 38 homes have been sold from Nov. 1, 2009 to the present.

She also said the interest rate was 5.13 percent as recently as last April. Now, most loans are approved for 4.5 percent.

She preferred that questions be directed toward the K. Hovnanian marketing department at the company office in Sacramento.

A voicemail message was left there Sept. 13, and an e-mail message was sent there on Sept. 14.

Neither was returned.